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COMPENDIUM 



OF 



History and Biography 



OF 



LINN COUNTY 
MISSOURI 



ILLUSTRATED 



A people that take no pride in the noble achievements of remote ances- 
tors, Avill never achieve anything worthy to be remembered with pride by 
remote generations. — Macaulay. 



CHICAGO 
HENRY TAYLOR & CO. 

Publishers, Engravers and Book Manufacturers 
HENRY TAYLOR, Jr. WM. H. BINGHAM 



Copyright 1912 

BY 

HENRY TAYLOE & CO. 



FOREWORD 



Every age, every race and every part of every new country 
inscribes itself witli greater or less distinctness on History's dial. Linn 
county, Missouri, has written and is writing its record on the immortal 
page; and while this is neither a loud-sounding nor a sentimental 
inscription, it is one engraved in large and enduring phrase, creditable 
to the people who have made and are making it, and altogether inter- 
esting and valuable in the chronicles of our common country. 

Tragedy has shown its dark and heavy hand in this story. Poetry 
has sparkled, heroism has glowed, stern endurance has presented an 
invulnerable front to hardships and the golden thread of sentiment 
has run brightly through the woof in its pages. The many-handed 
arm of industry has been at work among the people here for more than 
half a century. Eude, rugged labor has poured out its sweat like rain 
in their liehalf. The bounties of nature have been taken at the price 
she put on them— ingenuity, hard work, a study of conditions and the 
means to meet their requirements — and a large part of the wealth she 
had stored up in this region has been developed and put into the 
prooer channels for the service of mankind. 

It is the purpose of this volume to preserve, in some measure, 
the record of what the first settlers did in this region in sowing the 
seeds of civilization when they came hither from their former homes, 
and what their followers have done to care for and reap the harvest 
for which the pioneers prepared the way. The book is made up largely 
of personal biographies, and there has been no attempt to give undue 
tone or a spectacular trend to the course of events in it. Essential 
history insists on writing itself, and will not be anticipated, controlled 
or turned from its destined way. What the men and women of Linn 
county have done and are doing for its advancement and development 
embodies the real essence of the county's growth and progress, and 
points out, with unmistakable significance, the ends at which the people 
of the county aim and toward which they are moving. 

Tn their arduous task of preparing this history, its publishers and 



promoters have had valuable assistance from Maj. A. W. Mullins, 
of Linneus; Col. George W. Martin, of Brookfielcl, and Judge C. H. 
Bigger, of Marceline, in reviewing the general history of the county, 
as to which they have made many valuable suggestions. Aid has also 
been given the publishers in a substantial and appreciated form by 
Charles W. Green, of Brookfield, in his admirable account of the history 
of that city since 1882; by Clarence M. Kendrick in his lucid and 
interesting chapter on Marceline ; by Senator E, B. Fields in what he 
has written about Browning; by Oscar F. Libby in his narrative of 
the course of events at Laclede ; by George L. Joyce in matter furnished 
])y him and otherwise unattainable about Bucklin ; by D. B. Ormiston 
in his valued chapter on Linneus, and by many other persons who 
have been very helpful in making up the book. Without their aid the 
measure of success attained in the effort to present to the public a 
succinct and continuous story of what has occurred in Linn county 
from the dawn of civilization on its soil to its present high state of 
development, influence and importance, would have been impossible. 
The obligation of the publishers to these gentlemen, and all who have 
helped in compiling the work is considerable, and is hereby cordially 
and gratefully acknowledged. 

Finally, to the residents of the county, whose patronage has made 
the book possible, and whose life stories constitute the largest part 
of its contents, the publishers freely acknowledge their indebtedness 
with the hope that the volume will be an ample and satisfactory 
recompense. 



CONTENTS 



PAGE 

CHAPTER I 

Grasses 



General Description of Linn ^ounty-Cl^ate and CJa^cte^^i^ Soil^ 

and Vegetables-Tobacco Raismg-Once an Exten.n^^ Liverpool 

County 's Resources — Good Roads 

CHAPTER II 
Senator Lewis F. Linn. 

Creek CouBliy"-The First S£tl™'"'V'Sn«l 'Jack •' Holland, the roumler 
A Papoose for a White Boy-Why tb";. ^ea FaUe 1- J»«^,^.^°'!!?,'^„„i,ation of 

?fi,^'°C:r„a7y"-?"rs't ^ T S^ " cS^sl"* ^Y^'he Plo„eer?_The Pirst ^ 
Wedding— Early Ministers and Physicians 

CHAPTER III 

Hannibal-The Branny S*''?,"' ^"^•"-il'oTii^,',' of the "Bif '-Lax Methods of 
'^S^rS^^l B^S:iS:efHa„?s';§.?'Ge°„ts Each-The Pioneer's Wife. . 21 

CHAPTER IV 

The Era of Prosperi.y^Developnrent of |chool^ ;r\h^'Mexi7a?'' w\r-CalTTr 
Linn- .Presidential Election of 1S44— Shadow ol «« »"■ , ,j^ Campaign in 

I°lfo7lfnrcory'-\^e°.:rat '^ ^S't^ 1^'^^t the Gohf Lands- ^^ 
More Wealth in Missouri than was Found m Calitornia 

CHAPTER V 

The ■ ' ' Biggest Thing ' ' About the ' ' Rat Law 

CHAPTER VI 

First Linn County Fair-List of Ofilee^ Article jo^ T^^t ^^^SS^ 

Meteor-The Killing ?f^^}^-";^p^ f.^on-A Viooous Condemnation of Drinking 
Governor Crittenden s Reply to Petition A vi ui -Ro,,snm Price 



Deed'^ to County Seat. 



41 



vi CONTENTS 

PAGE 

CHAPTER VII 

How Liuneus Was Named — First Sale of Town Lots — Original Court House — A Smoky 
('abiu an<] a Scrap — "Where's the Fight?" — Jesse Bowyer 's Ferry — Sale of Slave 
Property — "Highland Couutj^" — Division of Townships — Appropriation for New 
Court House — Built Inside Amount Appropriated — First Talk of Railroads — Jail 
Building to be "Proof Against Breaking Out" — Colonel Robert M. Stewart — 
Sketch of His Career — His Work for the Hannibal and St. Joseph Railroad — A 
Hot Campaign for Governor 51 

CHAPTER VIII 

The Nations Wars — The Men of 1S12 — The Last Reunion in 1871 — Presidential 
Election of 1860 — Civil Strife — Linn County 's Prompt and Loyal Action — Early 
Organization and Movements — Capture of Two Confederate Cannon — Recruiting 
by Confederates of Linn and Sullivan Counties — Attempts to Capture Them by 
Federal Forces — Why They Failed — The Missouri Guerrilla — -Raid on Linneus — 
Killing of Judge Jacob Smith— A Woman Spy — Laclede Raided by Bush- 
whackers — Bounty Jumpers — When the Draft Came — Record of Engagements 
by Linn County Military Organizations — The Spanish American War — The 
Soldiers ' Monument at Brookfield 66 

CHAPTER IX 

Railroads of Linn County— The First Campaign Inspired by Exorbitant Steamboat 
Rates — Railroad Convention at Chillicothe in 1847 — Linn County's Delegates — 
First Great Disaster on Hannibal and St. .loe Road — The Bushwhacker — General 
Grant as a Protector of the Road — W. C. Brown — S. E. Crance — J. W. Mulhern— 
Tom Beeler, Pioneer Operator — P. H. Houlahau — I. N. Wilber on War-Time 
Railroading — How the Engines Were Named — The Burlington and Southwestern — 
.John McCartney — 30 Years an Engineer — When Thayer was the Division 
Town — Bishop Hogan— George H. Davis — The Pony Express — First Officials of 
the "Joe"— First Run of the "Eli "— Marceline and the Santa Fe — First Double 
Track in Missouri — General Notes 99 

CHAPTER X 

The Brunswick, Linneus and Milan Plank Road — First Publication of Receipts and 
Expenditures— County Court Decides War Tax Levy Unconstitutional — The Town 
of Thayer Vacated — Some New Townships — New County Jail — Linn County 
Agricultural and Mechanical Society — Common Pleas Court — Fight Over C<."nty 
Printing — Awarded to Paper That Paid One Dollar for It — Attempt to Remov-^ 
County Seat Defeated i2fi 

CHAPTER XI 

Assessed Valuation of Linn County in 1881- — Some Comparative Statistics — Last 
Census Bulletin Values Linn Countv Farm Land at .$.54. 80 per Acre — Thirteen 
Farms of 1,000 Acres and Over — Rapid Rise in Missouri Land Values — Linn 
County's Total Taxable Wealth, $10,217.242.0.5— Report on Live Stock— Some 
Important Figures on Missouri — Corn Crop of State Valued at .$107,.347,000 — 
Wheat Crop, $29,926,000 — Tenant Farmers Thrive — General Farming Conditions 
Satisfactory 134 

CHAPTER XII 

Educational— The Ci^^l War Depression — Peace Brings Advancement — Better Pro- 
visions for Schools — State Normals and Colleges — The Boy and Farm Life — 
New Methods of Rural Schools — Early Missouri School History — Origin of 
Public Schools System in 1839 — Law as Applied to Schools — Boards and Their 
Powers — Taxation — Length of Terms — School Funds and Appropriations — First 
Appropriation for Linn County — School Statistics of the County — Review of 
Some of the Town and City Schools — County Spelling Match at Laclede — ".lack" 
Rummell, the Champion Speller — Wins Two Good Suits of Clothes — Ruth Benson, 
Second 140 



CONTEXTS vii 



CHAPTEE XTII 



The Press of Linn Coimty— Tn 1875 There Were But Two Papers— In 1912 There 
Are Eleven — High Character of Publications — H. J. Wiggiuton on "Journalism" — 
Bishop Marvin's Terse Description of a Friend — Faults of Some Newspaper Men 
— Sketch of Linn County's First Publisher — A Pioneer Editor and Printer — 
Worked Alongside of "Mark Twain "—Went on a "Frolic" That Lasted Four 
Years — Original Country Correspondent Lives in Linn County — Reported Sen- 
sational Murder Case — The Brookfield Gazette — The Linneus Bulletin — The Linn 
County News — The Linn County Budget — The Brookfield Argus — Marceline 
Papers [See History of Marceline] 155 

CHAPTEE XIV 

Human Interest Chapter— A Red-Hot "Hoss" Race — Mr. Alexander's Game Ride — 
A "Hair Finish" — Famous Statesmen — Benton and Linn — Mrs. Linn's Presenti- 
ment Saves Husband's Life — Sketch of Benton — His A'isit to Linneus — He 
Answers a Question — "Give the Boys a Chance!" — The Duel With Lucas — 
Thirty Years in Congress — Humor of the Court — A Wise Janitor — Argued With 
a Juryman — First Execution in Linn County — End of "Tennessee Tom" — A 
Haunted Locality— The Howell Case— The" Taylor Case [See History of 
Browning] 172 

CHAPTER XV 

An Official Chapter — The County Representatives — Line of Circuit Judges — Intrepidity 
of Judge Smith at a Perilous Time — Senatorial and Congressional — Democratic 
Congressional Committee — Republican Congressional Committee — Democratic 
County Committee — Republican County Committee — Linn County's Population 
by Townships — Vote on State Officers — Incorporated Town and Villages — Post- 
offices — Linn County Newspapers 182 

CHAPTER XVI 

Brookfield, By Charles Willis Green — Marceline, By Clarence M. Kendrick — Bucklin, 
By George L. Joyce — Linneus, Since 1882, By D. B. Ormiston — Browning, By 
Senator E. B. Fields— Laclede, By Oscar F. Libby— Purdin, St. Catharine, 
Meadville and Other Towns of the County 195 

CHAPTER XVII 

Locust Creek Drainage System — Enterprise to Reclaim 25,000 Acres — Estimated 
Rise in Land Values — An Interesting Landmark — The Woodland Mills — Indian 
Mounds — Descendant of a Noted Warrior- — Boy Lost in the Wilderness — Sheltere<l 
by a Deer— A Mother's Joy— The Trail of "the 49ers— The Hannibal and St. 
Joseph Cross-State Highway— Automobile IMen and Farmers Working for an 
Important Improvement — List of Towns on Route — Statement by State Highway 
Engineer — Importance of Good Roads 249 



PORTRAIT INDEX 



PAGE PAGE 

A O 

-Alleu, Eev. Calvin 405 O'Neill, Thomas 566 

B p 

■Beckett, W. G 619 

-Bigger, Clellen G 534 Post, Jerome C. (deceased) 519 

Bresuehen, Thomas M 444 

Browiilee, Judge William H 291 R 

C Eandolph, Edward M 753 

r. 11 -D Ti 4. T c-o 'Robinson, S. Milton 705 

C alien, Rev. Peter J 6o3 ' 

D S 

DeGraw, Dr. Hamilton (deceased) 276 ^standly, Zachary T., M. D 363 

p "Sturtevant, Eugene 689 

^ Green, Charles Willis 482 T 

Tooey, James (deceased) 550 

'Halliburton, Thomas 502 Tooey, Henry (deceased) 310 

^Hier, James, Sr 721 -Tormey, Rev. Walter 636 

■Thud in m, John G 770 

fj 

Jones, C. H 460 V 

K -Van Dyke, Joseph ;;. . . 738 

-Kathan, R. Spencer 601 ^ 

M 

West, Harry K. (deceased) 426 

^Martin, Col. George W 328 Wheeler, Robert J. (deceased) 384 

Moore, James A 345 White, Hon. Beuiamin L 585 

Mullins, Maj. A. W 257 -Williams, Edward C 671 



INDEX OF VIEWS 



The Withrow Mill on Locust Creek 22 

"The Soldiers ' Monument at Brookfield 96 

*Type of Blockhouse erected along the Hannibal & St. Joseph E. R 105 

The ' * Missouri ' ' and The Pony Express 120 



IX 



INDEX OF BIOGRAPHY 



A ilor, John C 531 

Aiieii, Edmund B 528 

Allen, Rev. Calvin 405 

Anderson, George W 578 

Anderson, John M (deceased) 416 

Adams, George W 323 

Ambs, Daniel 788 

B 

Bailey, George W 467 

Bailev, Henrv C 664 

Baker, Albanes W 437 

Baker, William Jefferson 359 

Bak-om, William A 532 

Ballard, Ward L 632 

Bargar, Henry C 574 

Bargar, Hiram K 312 

Barnes, George A 727 

Baskett, Stephen V 696 

Beauchamp, Robert J 514 

Beckett, W. G 619 

Beckwith, Charles P 599 

Berkholder, Daniel 779 

Belshe, James F. (deceased) 608 

Bettelheim, Bernard J. G. (deceased) . . . 399 

Bigger, Clellen G 534 

Bigger, Guv W 331 

Bond, Judge A. B 299 

Borland. William A 686 

Botts, Frederick L 610 

Botts, Thomas M 612 

Botts, John H 613 

Botts, Joseph 624 

Bowden, Lorenzo S 397 

Bowden, Richard N 398 

Boiling, Beverly D 732 

Bowyer, Thoma's B 388 

Bowver, Price 722 

Boyles, Dr. J. M 784 

Bradley, Sterling L 387 

Brendahl, Ludwig (! 591 

Bresnehen, Thomas M 444 

Brinklev, Alexander 288 

Brinklev, William F 349 

Brott, Col. E. C 394 

Brown, John H 354 

Brown, Alonzo L 674 

Brown, Henry 474 

Browning Savings Bank 732 

Brown, Wells D. (deceased) 702 

Brown, John J. (deceased) 790 

Brownlee, Judge William H. (dec'd)... 291 



PAGE 

Broyles, Obadiah 728 

Bruce, Quincy R 746 

Buckley, Cornelius 637 

Buckley, David J 639 

Bunch, William M 450 

Burch, James W 350 

Burch, Samuel H 352 

Burdall, Jonathan 520 

Burke, Dr. Foster W 423 

Burke, Dr. John L 421 

Burns, Alpha L 375 

Burns, Thomas P 376 

Burns, Charles B 377 

Burris, Charles R 304 

Bushnell, Murray 263 

C 

Calhoun, James A 667 

Carlon, William J 373 

Carpenter, James 505 

( 'ater. Dr. William A 486 

Citizens Bank of Linneus 285 

Clarke, Albert C. (deceased) 441 

Clarke, Matthew 337 

( 'lark, John Silas 675 

( 'lements, Carroll L 454 

Clements, Charles W 453 

Clements, Richard W. (deceased) 461 

Clements, Joel W 459 

Clinef elter, John G 594 

Clough, Isaac H 560 

( oates, Edward R 581 

Coates, Arthur K 587 

( 'oates, Mark G 588 

( 'offman, Michael A 657 

Cotter, Benjamin S 760 

(,'ramer, Oliver 448 

Cullen, Rev. Peter J 653 

D 

Davis, Robert W. (deceased) 361 

DeOraw, Dr. Hamilton (deceased) 276 

Deininger, John J 342 

Dodd, Joseph A 570 

Duncan, Joseph T 621 

Duncan, John H 622 

Duncan, J. W 736 

E 

Early, George W 478 

P'hrich, tienrv 564 

Ellis, Dr. William W 484 



XI 



Xll 



INDEX OF BIOGEAPHY 



PAGE 

Ellis, J. P: 490 

Englehart, Henry F 572 

Eure, Dr. James B 512 

Evans, Dr. John S 498 

Evans, Thomas D 282 

Evertson, Henry F 757 

F 

Fain, John E. (deceased) 319 

Farmers' Exchange Bank of Browning. 666 

Fetty, Hon. Edward G (deceased) 391 

Fetty, Marcus B 393 

Fields, Hon. Emmett B 660 

First National Bank of Marceline 480 

Fitch, Frederick L 287 

I'^ore, Dr. Thomas P 496 

Fowler, Dr. Eezin T 431 

Fox, Philip 765 

Fox, Thomas 781 

Frakes, William K 536 

Fruin, Jeremiah (deceased) 717 

G 

Gibson, Samuel L 266 

Glasgow, Thomas B 641 

Glenn, Eobert 338 

Gooch, Alexander 748 

Gooch, Dr. Jenkins 724 

Gooch, John T 739 

Gooch, William P 741 

Good, Simon 742 

Goodwine, James 529 

Gould, Frederick W 522 

Green, Charles (deceased) 451 

Green, Charles Willis 482 

Gress, Frank E 719 

Griffeth, Seth 697 

Griffin, Benjamin F. (deceased) 562 

H 

Haley, Dr. Eobert 367 

Halev, George A 648 

Halliburton, Thomas 502 

Hamilton, James T 554 

Hamilton, James 1 544 

Hamilton, Lee E 555 

Hansen, Hubert (deceased) 549 

Hansmann, Theodore A 290 

Harter Christian 711 

Barter, George E 712 

Harter, Moses B 523 

Hartman, Samuel P 369 

Hatfield, James D . 314 

Hemmings, Joseph 679 

Hendricks, Jonathan J 408 

Hess, John A 683 

Hier, James, Sr 721 

Hinton, Clifford E 755 

Holcer, Gregory 340 

Howard, Dr. David F 537 

Howell, Lilburn L 625 

Hughes, William G 642 

Huffaker, James E., M. D 371 



James, William 510 

Jenkins, Dr. Charles E 455 

Johnson, Flarvey S 687 

Jones Bros 264 

Jones, C. H 460 

Jones, John M 280 

Joyce, George L 295 

K 

Kathan, E. Spencer 601 

Kelley, C. E 303 

Kendrick, Clarence M 296 

Kerr, John M 539 

Kinney, Eobert K 634 

KlJng, Zachariah E 596 

Knight, Jonathan 274 

L 

Lambert, Albert S 752 

Lambert, Thomas S 751 

LaTnbert, Eobert B 357 

Lamme, Byron 344 

Lancaster, William G 480 

Lander, Judge Harry (deceased) 260 

Lawson, J. Campbell 655 

Lewis, Aid E 715 

Libby, Oscar F 412 

Linhart, Samuel H 763 

Linn County Bank of Brookfield 446 

Littrell, Joseph J. (deceased) 615 

Llovd, George 598 

Loc'khart, John W 701 

Lomax, Edwin M 552 

Lomax, H. C 378 

TiOinax & Stanley, Bankers 377 

Loomis, Adgate L 556 

Luddeii, Thomas M 433 

Luyster, Houston 709 

Mc 

McAl]i.ster, Bradford 418 

MeCormick, Clayton Henry 355 

McCullum, Perry 734 

McCullum, Stephen 749 

McDonnell, Edward Eichard 316 

McGhee, William T 726 

McGregor, William B 703 

McKinney, Lorenzo T 778 

McKiuney, Asa 772 

M 

Martin, Col. George W 328 

Mason, Edgar E 334 

Maxwell, Eobert Finley 261 

Merchant, Sheldon J 604 

Miller, Henry 547 

Miller, Lawrence 649 

Moore, A. C 565 

Moore, William L 380 



INDEX OF BIOGRAPHY 



xiu 



PAGE 

345 
Moore, James A ^ 

Moore, Joseph W ^^^ 

Moorman, L. A „__ 

MulliBS, Maj. A. W f\ 

Murrain, Howard T '^"^ 

N 

Neal, James A. (deceased) 69* 

Neece, Jasper G • • 

Newsom, Cephas (deceased) ^^"^ 

O 

Ogan, Irvin (deceased) 298 

O'Neill, Thomas •• ••■••• ^^^^ 

Oveu, Thomas P., M. D. (deceased) .... 4^9 

P 

Palmer, John P ^^^ 

Parks, William E *' 1 

Parsons, Sidney '*-^ 

Patrick, B. J fJt 

Patrick, John B f^ 

Peery, Dr. Fred -^l' 

Pendleton, Walter "^-f 

People's Bank of Browning ^oo 

Perriu, John H., M. D ,4'-^ 

Perry, Joseph A ^1^« 

Phillips, James "^■:^ 

Phillips, John C * ' ^ 

Poison, Oscar L ;;°^ 

Post, Jerome C. (deceased) -^iy 

Post, Marvin C 'Z.' 

Potter, Orsa A ^^^ 

Powers, Fred W ^»^ 

Pratt, Oscar H ^^'J 

Pratt, Hon. Arthur L ^50 

Prewitt, Henry Clay ^^ 

Furdin, Allen W -'\ 

Purdin, John I ^J" 

Putman, Dr. Benjamin B *»» 

R 

Randolph, Edward M ^-^ 

Rankin, B. S ^o8 

Ransom, Nathaniel G 'J^^ 

Read, Abraham H. (deceased) 541 

Richardson, Albert J ^J^ 

Rinehart. Charles E o^o 

Robbins, William (deceased) <4^ 

Robinson, S. Milton JOo 

Rowland, Louis T o"" 

S 

Savage & Rankin 558 

Schrock, Edgar H J/T 

Sayers, Alexander '^^ 

Scott, Dr. John C. (deceased) 'ool 

Scott, Dr. William B 643 

Scott, Dr. Willis E 51b 



PAGE 

Selleck, Charles L ^17 

Sensenich, John H 2 ' ;! 

Sensintaffar, William L »^J 

Sharp, William f^ 

Shifflet, James D fo^ 

Shoup, Samuel '"» 

Sidebottom, William W ^^J. , 

Sidebottom, Eugene • • ^-f 

Sidebottom, James H. (deceased) b^s 

Smith, Charles E 787 

Smith, Ezekiel ^^^ 

Smith, Henry '^-^ 

Smith, Robert R *1" 

Smither, Richard T 401 

Sornberger. Henry *^* 

Spalding, Charles L 439 

Spencer, Jacob E ' »5 

Standlv, Edmund D., M. D 494 

Standly, Dr. Catherine ^]84 

StandlV, Zachary T., M. D ^^^ 

Stauber, Col. Thaddeus J. (deceased) . . . b46 

Stephens, John L ^'l^ 

Stephens, Judge George W ''o 

Stockwell, Henry C ^^ 

Stone, Granville H. (deceased) t'o 

Stone, Albert H ^75 

Sturtevant, Eugene »^^ 

Sturtevant. M. G ^}J\ 

Swan, Albert P "^^ 

T 

Tavler, E. W 424 

Taylor, Manly H ^«i 

Tharp, Evan S. (deceased) '^o 

The People's Bank of Meadville S-L 

Thomas, Benjamin F. (deceased) 278 

Thompson, Howard M 576 

Thorne, William P 286 

Thudium, George S ''^ 

Thudium, Daniel 'J^' 

Thudium, .lohn G "^ 

Tooey, James (deceased) 5o0 

Tooey, James C 4^jr 

Tooev, Henrv (deceased) ^1^ 

Tornlev, Rev. Walter 6db 

Tuite, William J. (deceased) 5<J4 

V 

A^an Dyke, Joseph '^'^8 

W 

Walbv, John B ^.58 

Walkup, ,loseph T ^-* 

Ware, Marcellus E ^-^ 

Watson, Thomas L. (deceased) '18 

Welsh, Alexander A 5o9 

West, Harrv K. (deceased) 4 « 

West, Henry J "^l 

Whalev, Dr. Roy W ob8 

Wheeler, Robert J. (deceased) ^»* 

Wheeler, William N 4^:; 

White, Hon. Benjamin L »»» 



xiv INDPJX OF BIOGEAPHY 

PAGE PAGE 

Wilber, Isaac Newton 500 Wolfe, Willard 273 

Williams, Edward C 671 Wood, John F 306 

Wilson, Benjamin S 768 Wood, J. L 593 

Wilson, Lee A 692 Woollen, James 1 546 

Wilson, Sheldon L. (deceased) 783 

Withers, Alonzo 659 Z 

Wolfe, Frank M 420 Zureher, Albeit 427 



History of Linn County, Missouri 



CHAPTER I 



General Description of Linn County — Climate and Character of Soil 
— Grain, Grasses and Vegetables — Tobacco Raising — Once an 
Extensive Industry — How the Crop Was Cared For — Heavy Ship- 
ments to Europe — Sudden Drop in the Liverpool Market — Blow to 
Industry — Demand for Country Produce Comes in Time to Relieve 
Situation — Growth of Coal Mining in Linn County — Report of 
Mine Inspector — Tonnage, 86,774; Value of Product, $187,913 
— General Revieiv of County's Resources' — Good Roads. 

Linn county is centrally located in north Missouri, which is under- 
stood as being north of the Missouri river; and, on an east and west 
line, is exactly in the center of that part of the state. It has not 648 
square miles, but, leaving fractions out, has 611, and contains 392,040 
acres of land, of which was assessed in the year 1881, 387,759.5 acres. 
Linn county, by government survey, has an area of 389,993.58 acres 
(by C. G. Bigger in 1866). There is at least that amount of arable 
land that nature has richly endowed with productive force, and of such 
a variety that all tastes can be suited. The beautiful, undulating 
prairie, the timberland of the bottoms — all equally rich, and all having 
their special qualities. 

Nearly the entire county is a rolling prairie, growing more rugged 
in the vicinity of the larger streams, but presenting a vista of beauty 
in hill and dale. Locust creek enters at Section 11, Township 60, of 
Eange 21, and flows south through Section 33, Township 57, of Range 

21. East Yellow creek enters at Section 9, Township 60, of Range 18, 
and unites with West Yellow creek, which enters at Section 10, Town- 
ship 60, of Range 19, in Chariton county. Section 33, Township 57, of 
Range 19. Parson creek rises in Section 25, Townsliip 60, of Range 

22, and flows south into Chariton at Section 35, Township, 57, of Range 

1 



2 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

22. The other streams are : West Parson, Turkey and Little Turkey, 
Muddy and Little Muddy, Elk, Badger, Van Dusen, East Locust, Wine- 
gan (a branch of Mussell Fork), with many small tributaries. Along 
the streams are found the blue and gray limestone, excellent for build- 
ing purposes; while in the southwestern part of the county, on 
Stephen's ranch, is a deposit of sandstone equal in quality to the Car- 
roll county quarry, of a pure cream color, and becoming more solid on 
exposure. White and burr oak, hickory, walnut, the various elms, syca- 
more, cherry, hackberry, ash, butternut, horse-chestnut, maple, and 
many others are found in liberal quantities, providing timber for home 
use and export. There are many good mines of bituminous coal now 
being worked in various portions of the county. There is no question 
that coal underlies a substrata of nearly the entire part of it. An 
abundance of good brick clay is found in almost every part of the 
county, and large deposits of potter's clay are found in various 
localities. 

The climate of Missouri is mild and salubrious. It avoids the 
piercing blasts of Iowa, and the extreme heat of a more southern clime. 
Its atmosphere is clear, free from the miasmatic influences which are 
so often found in the more eastern states, and is of that bracing and 
invigorating character which tends to develop both man and beast. The 
surface of Linn county is rolling, the drainage is excellent, and with 
such advantages, the highest type of health exists. Malarial fevers are 
not prevalent, and her people enjoy life to an advanced age. There- 
fore, on the score of health, this county will compare favorably with 
any section of the Union. The county occupies a mean altitude of 
about 900 feet; hence it is not subject to the piercing wintry blasts 
experienced on the more elevated plains farther westward. Pulmonary 
diseases are never begotten here, and are never seen, except in cases 
where the seed was sown in other climes. No purer, sweeter, fresher 
air was ever breathed by human lungs than that which fans our prairie 
slopes. 

It is the richness and productiveness of soil which makes Linn 
county stand pre-eminent among the counties of north Missouri. The 
alluvial bottom lands, with the soil reaching in depths from two to six 
feet, lying along every stream and creek, are easy of tillage and make 
splendid fields and magnificent farms. This soil is simply inexhaustible, 
and a corn crop can be raised from year to year for a quarter of a 
century without exhausting the producing qualities. 

The soil is of black loam, of great depth and richness, and is gen- 
erally underlaid with a rich, calcareous clay, abundant in silicia and 



HISTORY OF LIXN COUNTY 3 

the phosphates and carbonates of lime. Such a subsoil with the black 
mold above referred to makes the finest basis for grains, grasses, and 
fruits in the world, and gives a wide range of production, and when 
thrown to the surface, soon under the influence of lieat and cold, rain 
and sunshine, slacks like an ash heap, and is unsurpassed in its produc- 
ing qualities. In the entire county there is little land, indeed, that 
cannot be utilized as either agricultural or grazing lands. Everything 
grown in this latitude, from ocean to ocean, is produced here in high 
quality and most bountiful growth. Corn, wheat, oats, barley, rye, flax, 
broom-corn, millet, hungarian, sorghum, tobacco, hemp, all the garden 
and field vegetables and a long list of fruits, with the whole family of 
grasses, any and all are at home in this soil and reach perfection in 
growth and quality. This remarkable versatility of production gives 
this county prime agricultural advantages over the special farming- 
regions of the continent. Corn is the great staple and gives a yield of 
40 to 100 bushels per acre, depending upon cultivation and season. 

Winter and spring wheat are both successfully grown, the yield 
per acre ranging from 12 to 25 bushels. Rye never fails to give a yield 
of 20 to 40 bushels per acre. Oats run from 25 to 60 bushels, and barley 
from 20 to 40 bushels. Flax is a very remunerative crop and will 
become a popular product in the near future. Irish and sweet potatoes 
give an unusually large yield, and are particularly adapted to this soil. 
The garden is bountiful in every variety of vegetable production. But 
one of the grandest resources in this county is found in her native and 
domestic grasses. There is no better soil for grasses between the Gfreat 
Lakes and the mountains. The wild prairie grasses are readily yield- 
ing to blue grass and white clover. Blue grass is indigenous to the 
country and is steadily making the conquest of the wild prairie, forest, 
and field, until blue grass is king in Linn county, as in the famous graz- 
ing regions of Illinois and Kentucky. Blue grass is everywhere, from 
the water line to the crown of the hills, sweet, tender, and luxuriant as 
any herbage that ever bared its bosom to the herds. In this mild 
climate it makes pasturage well nigh perpetual. The rainy seasons 
develop a splendid growth of white clover in the old pastures, and the 
red clover and timothy meadows are as luxuriant in this county as 
anywhere on the green earth. Timothy meadow gives a yield of two 
and three tons and not unfrequently three and a half tons of hay per 
acre. 

A large portion of lands are finely adapted for tobacco raising and 
large quantities of fine quality are produced. 

Previous to the Civil War Linn and its neighbor, Chariton county. 



4 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

raised an immense amount of tobacco. This was the farmer's staple 
crop in those early days. Having set out so many acres he could go 
to his merchant and get credit for household and farm supplies until 
his crop was sold. At that time there was practically no market for 
country produce, game and grain. Eggs were quoted at 3 cents a 
dozen, and then most of the time the farmer had to take his payment 
in trade. The big tobacco shipper, however, stood ready with cash in 
hand to pay the farmer for his crop. Large tobacco barns, then called 
factories, were established in the most important towns, and here the 
negroes worked at stripping and packing leaf tobacco in large hogs- 
heads. These hogsheads would hold from 1,400 to 2,000 pounds of 
tobacco. They w^ere transported in large wagons to Brunswick or 
Glasgow, where they were loaded on Missouri river boats for St. Louis. 
At certain seasons of the year the shipments were so heavy that the 
boats were loaded down with tobacco until the water would splash on 
the lower deck. 

Nearly all of the Missouri tobacco went to Europe. In certain 
sections of the old world the Missouri product was a high favorite for 
plug and smoking because of its great strength. Engiislnnen in par- 
ticular were very fond of the long leaf tobacco raised in Missouri, 
known to the trade as * ' Shoestring. ' ' At that time — prior to 1886 — it 
was against the law to cultivate tobacco in England. The other Mis- 
souri varieties raised were known as ''Iron Oker," "Yellow Oker," 
and ''One Sucker." "White Burley" was grown towards the close 
of the tobacco industry in Missouri. It is said that this variety of 
tobacco absorbed so much moisture on the ocean voyage that its extra 
weight at the port of delivery would pay the freightage across. But- 
it was the smart dealer on the other side who gained the advantage by 
this, and he long kept it to himself as a trade secret. The vessels 
collected the freight bill at the port of embarkation, and, of course, 
could not charge again on the other side. 

A good quality of tobacco sold readily at from $10 to $12 per 100 
pounds. Buyers would travel over the country and make contracts for 
the factories. 

The main drawback to a tobacco crop is that it drains the fertility 
of the soil quicker than any other product. That may be the reason 
England passed a law against its being raised there. After land has 
been planted in tobacco for three seasons it is pretty well used up, and 
it requires a great deal of careful nursing to bring it back to a state of 
fertility again. It is said by the old tobacco raisers that if a crop were 
well tended it would easily produce 750 pounds to the acre. But it 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 5 

required constant watching. About three acres was enough for one 
man to look after, if he also had to run the general work of the farm. 

The discovery that India could produce splendid tobacco was the 
cause of the industry stopping in Missouri and other American states. 
This situation developed so quickly that a great many tobacco dealers 
of Missouri were ruined. They had large consignments on the way to 
Liverpool, but before the product got there the bottom had dropped 
out of the market and the price of tobacco had fallen so low that the 
American shipments wouldn't bring enough to pay the freightage. In 
one instance the Liverpool dealers drew on the Missouri shipper to pay 
the difference between the freight bill and what the tobacco sold for. 

Those things stopped the tobacco industry in Missouri suddenly, 
but about that time the iron horse had appeared and the great cities 
were taking Missouri's grain and live stock at living prices. 

Within the past two or three years the price of white hurley has 
gone up because of a demand from China, where the Celestial has been 
ordered to discard his opium pipe. 

Some few Missouri counties took up the business again and it was 
demonstrated that tobacco might be produced here as well as in the 
olden days, should the necessity arise. But now the price of stock and 
grain and all kinds of country produce have advanced so that the 
farmer doesn't care to devote much time to the weed. 

In a history of Linn county printed in 1882 there was this reference 
to the then infant industry of coal mining : 

''There are now four coal mines being worked in Linn county. 
The industry is yet in its infancy, and until wood becomes scarce, or 
the demand for coal exceeds its supply, little will be done in Linn county 
to develop the immense wealth which is hidden below the surface of 
her soil. It is there, however, and it is a guarantee that so long as the 
world stands, or at least for scores of generations to come, that the 
fuel supply of Linn county will never be a source of fear because of its 
scarcity or high price." 

The demand referred to came with the construction of the Atchison, 
Topeka and Santa Fe Eailroad in 1887-8, and shafts were sunk at 
Marceline and Bucklin. These have been operated steadily and have 
produced the large tonnage necessary for the road's use and for export. 

The Twenty-Fourth Annual Report of the Bureau of Mines, Mining 
and Mine Inspection of Missouri, issued in 1912, gives these statistics 
of the present state of the coal mining industry of Linn county: 



6 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

No. of mines operated 6 

No. of miners 297 

Average price per ton paid for pick work $1.42 

Average wages paid per day $2.63 

Total number of men employed in mining 404 

Total number of tons produced, pick and 

machine 86,774 

Value of product $187,913 

Price per ton received at mine $2.69 

Following is list of linn county operators, mines and location at 
time of report: 

Bucklin Coal Co Bucklin Bucklin 

Howery Brothers Howery Brookfield 

Landreth Coal Co Landreth Marceline 

Marceline C. and M. Co No. 1 Marceline 

Marceline C. and M. Co No. 2 Marceline 

Turpin Brothers Turpin Brookfield 

AVine, H. C Wine Brookfield 

The coal beds of Linn county are reached by shafts at a depth of 
from 130 to 230 feet, the latter depth being at Bucklin. The seam runs 
from two feet four inches to three feet, and the coal is taken out on 
the ''longwall system." All the larger mines are equipped with steam 
for hoisting and for operating the machines and fans. 

Following are the officers of the incorporated coal companies of 
Linn county: 

Bucklin Coal Company— President, C. B. Cantwell ; secretary, J. C. 
Lamson; superintendent, 0. B. Cantwell; foreman, George Woodruff. 

Marceline Coal and Mining Company — President, L. C. Jackson; 
Secretary, C. P. Cleugh; superintendent, J. Hemmings; foreman, P. 
Kelley. 

The last Industrial Edition of the Linn County Bulletin contained 
these general observations on "Linn County and Its Industries": 

Some years ago many people thought the drift from the "rural 
districts" toward the large cities was certain to absorb all workers and 
all industries of the country except those pertaining directly to agricul- 



HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 7. 

tnre and mining. It was conjectured that centralization in the big city- 
machine shops and factories would force the small concerns in the 
country to the wall ; that the big department stores of the cities would 
absorb the country stores; that the big city daily newspapers would 
drive the country weeklies from the field — in short, that everything 
worth having in the country, except farms and mines and other prop- 
erty which could not be moved, would either be destroyed or taken in 
by the big centers of population. 

But times have changed and we have changed with them. 

The growth of small cities has not been checked; quite the con- 
trary. If there is a drift at all, it is toward the country and the small 
cities. At least, the country districts are keeping a fair ratio of 
advancement with the big municipalities. Country merchants who use 
modern methods are more generally successful than ever before. As 
for manufacturing concerns, they are finding that for many reasons the 
small cities are better locations than the large ones. In the East, where 
manufacturing is the principal occupation, most of the largest concerns 
have their factories outside the big cities, while only their offices and 
a corps of clerks are kept in New York, Philadelphia or Boston. The 
same condition will eventually obtain in north Missouri, where manu- 
facturing is growing at a rapid rate. 

We believe it is no far cry to the time when Linn county — its excel- 
lent natural resources in the way of fuel, timber, etc., and its railroad 
facilities furnished by the two Burlington lines, the Santa Fe system 
and the Wabash — shall have extensive factories employing thousands 
of men, located in the various towns. 

The rapid growth of such institutions that we now have among us 
is a portent of future progress in this direction. Of course our local 
industrial condition is now, and perhaps always shall be, based upon 
agriculture. The county has been greatly blessed in this direction, 
having 396,800 acres. The ^^early production of our farms in the way 
of crops amounts in round numbers to $2,000,000; in live stock and 
produce to nearly $4,000,000. Of the total production a surplus of not 
far from $1,500,000 was shipped last year, as shown by figures from 
the commissioner of labor of the state of Missouri. 

W^hy should not this surplus be kept at home to feed a large manu- 
facturing population? 

We quote the following from the Linneus Bulletin, which we think 
fully describes the local conditions : 

''As for manufactures, we point with an unusual degree of pride 
to a num])er of thriving concerns : At Brookfield are pressed and vitri- 



8 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

fied brick works with a big annual sale, iron foundry and machine shops, 
railroad machine shops, and cigar factories. At Marceline, we have 
great coal mines, the shops of the Santa Fe system, flouring mills, etc. 
At Linneus the Superior Hay Stacker Manufacturing Co. has a large 
plant and foundry; here are also located a cigar factory, flouring mills, 
etc. At Browning, in the northern edge of the county, is the Jenkins 
Hay Rake and Stacker manufacturing plant, employing nearly 100 men, 
and doing a vast business. 

"It was with this vision before us of Linn county as an already 
considerable industrial center that we planned this edition of the Bul- 
letin, to show, as far as type and pictures could show, what we already 
have here, in the people, their occupations and their homes. We believe 
a study of these will reveal to any inquirer the fact that Linn county 
offers valuable opportunities to any worthy industry — opportunities 
which, as a whole, are hardly to be surpassed elsewhere. 

"We offer, for instance, a highly civilized people, marked for their 
intelligence, sobriety, industry and adaptability to any pursuit requir- 
ing these characteristics. They are willing to assist and encourage 
any laudable enterprise. 

"We offer easy access to markets East, West, North, and South. 

' ' Vast fields of coal are known to underlie this section of the state, 
and our Linn county mines already produce each year about 80,000 tons. 
(The actual tonnage as shown by mine inspector's last report is 86,774, 
the value being $187,913— Editor History.) 

"We offer a low tax rate, with an efficient though economical 
administration of internal affairs. Our county tax is 32 cents on the 
$100 valuation; school tax, 50 cents. Missouri's state tax is only 17 
cents. 

"The entire county is strung with telephone wires, inter-communi- 
cating between all neighborhoods, so that one can stand in Linneus, 
Brookfield, Marceline, Meadville, Laclede, Browning, Purdin or Buck- 
lin — in fact, in any part of the county — and converse with people in 
any other part. This will give an idea of the convenience with which 
local business may be transacted. 

"Rural free delivery is also highly developed here, there being 
now 27 routes beginning within the limits of the county, serving not 
less than 10,800 of our 30,000 population. As about 15,000 of our people 
live in towns, it will be seen that a vast majority of our farmers are 
reached by rural free delivery service. And other lines are to be estab- 
lished. 

Our business men are modern in methods, progressive, and invite 



HISTORY OF LIjS^N COUNTY 9 

all classes of honorable business institutions suitable to this locality to 
come and make a permanent location in Linn county. These business 
men are not mere "boomers," trying to induce anyone to come here 
whether there be a chance for success or not ; if the opportunities for a 
prospective newcomer are not good, they will frankly tell him so if he 
asks their opinion. They want substantial concerns, with either merit 
or capital, or both, to locate here and become fixed institutions. Such 
should address for further information than is contained in this paper 
the Commercial Clubs at Brookfield, Marceline or Linneus. 

Concerning the live stock industry the same paper contains this 
interesting article: 

The raising and marketing of cattle and hogs is the chief industry 
of Linn county next to the growing of crops, mainly made so by natural 
conditions and the good judgment of our farmers. 

Linn is the central county of the blue grass district of north Mis- 
souri. Blue grass grows luxuriantly in every pasture and yard, and on 
every roadside, furnishing the best grazing in the world from six to 
eight months of the year. With this as a foundation and with a strong 
soil capable of yielding fine crops of corn, making that important feed 
as "cheap here as anywhere, our farmers naturally find a good profit 
in raising calves and in buying and fattening feeders. 

Arrangements for caring for cattle on the farm are being improved 
steadily, and it will not be long until our farmers are all putting the 
maximum of beef on their cattle at a minimum cost. 

Many of them are proceeding along scientific lines — and this word 
"scientific" means here, as it does in other connections, that they knoiv 
what they are doing. They make a close study of the subject, count the 
cost of every detail, and watch for certain effects from certain causes. 
This is one reason why about two million dollars' worth of cattle alone 
are produced here in a year, and nearly a half million dollars' worth of 
swine. 

"Good Roads" is the timely subject treated by J. M. Smith, of 
Brookfield, in the same paper, as follows : 

In order to enlist and engage the attention of every person in all 
parts of the country on this very important subject, some method must 
be adopted to procure sufficient means to construct substantial high- 
ways all over every state and county and in every township and neigh- 
borhood in the country. Should a practical plan of raising this money 
be presented to the people by which this might be brought about, I feel 
assured that there would be no hesitation on the part of any to put his 
hand to the plow and push forward this mighty enterprise. 



10 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

I have thought that the United States, by internal revenue, could 
raise one billion dollars during the next twenty-five years for this work 
— this would be only forty millions per year — the amount to be appor- 
tioned to the several states according to their population, but not avail- 
able to the use of any state until a specified per cent of state funds be 
added thereunto. Then, I propose that each state say to its various 
counties that their proportion of both national and state funds may be 
used when said county adds a stated per cent thereto. 

Construction of these roads should begin at the county seats and 
leading towns, when conditions and circumstances would permit — or 
they could begin at a point nearest the material, thus giving the con- 
structed road over which to transport more material for its further 
construction. 

In order to awaken an interest in the entire county to a point of 
arousing people's influence, looking towards a means of securing money 
to build a sufficient mileage of roads to be of any value, each community 
must understand that it will get its share ; each farmer must see a good 
road coming his way; every laboring man must realize the chances thus 
presented for employment ; each producer must appreciate the fact of a 
ready market at his very door — all must understand that this is not 
a class legislation, taxing the many to benefit the few. 

Who is not interested in good roads f Find the man who will oppose 
them! Who is the congressman who will dare to stand up against a 
measure looking towards securing them! Is there a statesman in the 
land who would not lend his influence for good roads? Can you think 
of a man, woman or child — can you name an enterprise, a business of 
any kind that would not be benefited by good roads ? The agriculturist, 
the merchant, the manufacturer, the miner — all are crying Good Eoads. 
We hear it said: "We will never get them." This I fail to believe. 
I expect in the very near future to see many thousands of miles of good 
roads in the United States of America — it is possible. 

I look about me, I see many, many silver-haired veterans in the 
good roads' cause. They have spent their time, their energies, their 
money, hoping and anxiously awaiting to realize their expectations of 
the many past years. We bid you cheer up, faithful soldiers of the good 
roads' cause; we see in the future, just above the horizon, a mighty 
army marching onward and upward at a very rapid pace. We look 
again — forward they march, many banners are displayed, and we see 
inscribed thereon in golden letters: "Good Roads." They come nearer 
and we hear them cry: "Good Roads," still nearer they come and we 
see depicted on their very countenances "Good Roads." We ask: 



HISTORY OF LINX COUNTY 11 

'^Wliat does this mean?" The answer is: "This is the result of these 
many years of hard fighting. We now have enlisted in our army the 
entire family of Uncle Sam — not only the fathers, but the mothers, 
brothers and sisters." 

We see many means of transportation here represented: We see 
the old fashioned wagon drawn by oxen; then comes the two-horse 
wagon with the ordinary spring seat; the spring wagon; the buggy; 
the bicycle; the horseless carriage or automobile — all following each 
other in quick succession and each more persistent than the one imme- 
diately preceding in demanding ' * Better Eoads. ' ' 



CHAPTER II 

Missouri's Admission as a State — Hazards of the Early Settlers — The 
Fertile "Locust Creek Country" — The First Settlement — Indians' 
Queer Barter for a Slave Girl — A Papoose for a White Boy — 
Why the Deal Failed — "Jack" Holland, the Founder of Linneus — 
Trouble With Wolves — The Old Mill at Keytesville — Organization 
of Linn County- — First Mill on Locust Creek — Some of the Pioneers 
— The First Wedding — Early Ministers and Physicians. 



Senator Lewis F. Linn 

The statesman for whom Limi county was named was largely 
responsible for the Platte Purchase, a noble tract of land which was 
added to the state of Missouri in 1836. The first official action regard- 
ing the Platte Purchase was a memorial of the Missouri Legislature, 
adopted in January, 1831, petitioning congress to make more certain 
and definite the northwestern boundary of the state. In this memorial 
it is said that "when this state was formed the whole country on the 
west and north was one continued wilderness, inhabited by none but 
savages, and but little known to the people of the government of the 
United States." 

No action resulted from this memorial until January 27, 1835, when 
Senator Linn became greatly interested. He addressed a letter on the 
subject to Major John Dougherty, of Clay county, Indian agent on the 
Missouri river, who was at that time in Washington on business. Major 
Dougherty replied the same day, recommending that the Indian title to 
this territory be extinguished and that it be added to the state of Mis- 
souri. In the summer of 1835 a meeting of the people of northwestern 
Missouri was held near Liberty, in Clay county. At this gathering- 
Gen. Andrew S. Hughes presided and a petition was formulated urging 
that this territory be added to the state. At the next session of con- 
gress Senator Benton introduced a bill to that effect. The proposition 
involved many difficulties ; for instance, that Missouri was already the 
largest state in the Union; that this district, north of the line of the 
Missouri Compromise, would be made slave territory; and that the 

13 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 13 

Indians would have to be removed from the district which only a short 
time before had been assigned to them as a permanent home. Never- 
theless, but little opposition was made to the bill, and in June, 1836, it 
was enacted into a law. The negotiation of a treaty with the Indians 
was entrusted to Governor William Clark. The terms which he arranged 
with them were ratified by the senate, February 15, 1837, and the In- 
dians removed in the same year. In October, 1837, the legislature of 
Missouri passed an act accepting this additional territory, and at the 
same time organized the county of Platte. Thus the so-called Platte 
Purchase was added to the state. Perhaps the most important service 
in the acquisition of this territory was rendered by Senator Linn ; but 
to Gen. David R. Atchison, Gen. Andrew S. Hughes, Major John 
Dougherty and E. M. Samuels is due the credit of beginning the agita- 
tion and bringing the matter to the attention of congress. 

The following sketch of Lewis F. Linn is taken from Houck's His- 
tory of Missouri: 

Lewis F. Linn, born near Louisville, Kentucky, November 5, 1796 ; 
son of Asabel Linn and Nancy Hunter, daughter of Joseph Hunter, 
Carlisle, Pa., and who from there removed to western Pennsylvania, 
before the Revolutionary War, and afterward came down the Ohio with 
the expedition of Gen. George Rogers Clarke. Linn's father was son 
of Col. William Linn, and while a boy was captured by the Indians with 
two other boys, named Brashears and Wells, but afterwards escaped. 
His mother was first married to Israel Dodge, at Ft. Jefferson, where 
her father for a time was in command, by whom she had one son, Henry 
Dodge, a name well-known in the annals of Missouri, Iowa and Wis- 
consin. Lewis F. Linn was educated at Louisville, studied medicine 
under the instruction of Dr. Gait ; came to Ste. Genevieve in 1815, where 
his half-brother, Henry Dodge, then resided, and began to practice 
medicine in partnership with Dr. Henry Lane there. Appointed com- 
missioner to examine Spanish claims in 1832, and when Senator Alex- 
ander Buckner died in 1833, was appointed United States senator to fill 
the vacancy by Governor Dunklin, and in 1834 elected unanimously by 
the legislature, and re-elected in 1836-37, and also in 1842-43. Died in 
1843 universally lamented. 



From the time that Missouri was admitted to statehood dates its 
real development. The congested centers of the East began pouring 
their adventurous population into the new state. The men who first 
came were empire builders. They looked into the future and determined 
that their work should be a part of it. 



14 HISTORY OF LIXX COUNTY 

In the early part of the last century the section this side of the 
Mississippi was the far-west. It was almost undiscovered. Save for 
the tales of hardy hunters and trappers it was unknown. 

When Missouri was admitted as a territory on June 14, 1812, 
Napoleon was still the great figure of the Eastern Hemisphere. Nine 
years later, on August 10, 1821, when it was admitted as a state, his sun 
had set to rise no more. Tranquility in Europe brought prosperity to 
American shores. The Atlantic seaboard developed rapidly and enter- 
prise pushed westward. The choice spirits of Virginia, Kentucky and 
other states came by thousands into the new state of the Great Missis- 
sippi Valley. These pioneers, writing home to their friends, told of the 
magnificent streams and forests surpassing anything in their native 
states. Thus others were induced to come and the tide of immigration 
steadily increased. At first the settlements were mostly along the 
streams, but new lands were constantly taken up and the population 
spread in all direction. After a decade of trial the settlers were satis- 
fied with their holdings. The land was good, the climate healthy and 
the friends they had made in the new state were as true and loyal as 
those they had left about the old homestead. 

Of course they found many difficulties and dangers, but they 
reckoned with these when they left home and were prepared for them. 
There were Indians and wild animals in the forests ; the streams had 
not been bridged and the crossings were hazardous. Men out hunting 
would sometimes be separated from their families for weeks, because 
of a sudden rise of the water. 

In some parts of Missouri the Iventuckians made the land look 
homelike by importing blue grass seed from their native state. Before 
many years northern Missouri became as great a blue grass country as 
Kentucky ever was. 

"The Locust Creek Country" was the name given to a broad and 
fertile stretch of land tributary to that stream. The settlers of Howard 
and Chariton counties frequented the Locust Creek Country to hunt 
and fish. James Pendleton and Joseph Newton, who lived near Fayette, 
were among the first white men to visit this region for that purpose. 
They were so charmed with it that they decided to pick out a location 
and remain here permanently. They came in the fall of 1831, erecting 
their log cabin and filing claim to Section 14, Township 58, Kange 21, 
now the southwest corner of Locust Creek Township. Having properly 
established their location the two hunters went back to Howard county 
for their families and returned with them in the following spring. 
These were the first white settlers in Linn county. 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 15 

The family of William Bowyer was the next to come from Howard 
comity. Mr. Bowyer and his brother Jesse were among the Howard 
county hunters who had visited the Locust Creek Country and liked it 
so well that they decided to make it their permanent home. That was 
in January, 1832, five years before the county was organized. The 
Bowyers made their first camp on Section 2, about a mile and a half 
west of Linneus. There was a good spring within easy reach, always 
an advantage of much value to the pioneer. A substantial log cabin was 
built and the Bowyers put their shoulders to the wheel of development 
of the country. William Bowyer 's family consisted of his wife, Martha, 
two small children, a young slave girl, Ann, by name, and Mrs. Bow- 
yer 's brother, Lewis Tyre. Jesse Bowyer, having assisted in getting 
William located in the Locust Creek Country, went back into Howard 
county after his own family. William accompanied him. It was in the 
winter time and while they were away there was a heavy snow fall. 
This snow melted rapidly and Locust Creek, along with all the other 
streams of that country, were soon running bank full and overflowing.' 
There were no bridges or ferry ; the country was practically a wilder- 
ness, and the Bow^'ers were not able, because of the swollen streams, 
to reach the home of William for several weeks. Mrs. Martha Bowyer, 
with the characteristic intrepidity of the pioneer woman, encouraged 
her little flock and told them that all would be well. They were in a 
land remote, its terrors of field and forest entirely unknown, but this 
brave mother's spirit was equal to the emergency, and when her hus- 
band and his brother returned the family was found in good shape, but 
mighty anxious to see them. While the men were away the Indians 
were frequently about the Bowyer camp, but they were good Indians 
and molested no one. 

Later on, however, a party of Indians came down from Iowa and 
when they visited the Bowyer settlement they saw the negro girl, Ann, 
who was as lively as she was black, and they became so much interested 
in her that they tried to make a deal with the Bowyers' to let them 
have her. Ann cut up high jinks when she found the warriors wanted 
her, and nearly raised the roof off the house by her lamentations. The 
Indians supposed that she would be tickled to death to become the bride 
of some noble warrior, and were much puzzled over her actions, but 
when they understood what was bothering Ann they ceased to impor- 
tune for her. 

The frequent proximity of the Indians was occasioned by their 
visits to a village they had on a 40-acre mound a few miles southwest 
of Linneus. Here they held their pow-wows and went through their 



16 HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 

dances, which would have been of great interest to the settlers had they 
been numerous enough to hold their own in the event of an uprising. 
But in those days the white families were very careful not to become 
too intimate with the Indians, or to observe their peculiar forms of wor- 
ship too closely, lest some little inadvertence might start trouble. 

William and Jesse Bowyer at once set about constructing log cabins 
and clearing away the timber. Two of the cabins, built in a workman- 
like manner, of round logs, were finished and occupied March 1, 1832. 
Then the brothers devoted their time to preparing the land for farm- 
ing. They had at that time all out-doors to work in, and no likelihood 
of any controversies with neighbors over division fences and dividing 
lines. 

In 1832 Silas and Peter Fore came to Section 29, Township 59, 
Eange 20, some two miles northeast of Linneus, and located. The act 
of the legislature organizing Linn county honored Silas Fore by choos- 
ing his house for the seat of the county government. Among the other 
parties who soon settled in the neighborhood were Judge James A. 
Clark, Thomas Eussell, John J. Flood, Dr. Nathaniel Dryden and David 
Curtis. A year later John Yount came from Cole county, Missouri, and 
located on Section 11, Township 58, Range 21. The above list com- 
prises the settlers in Linn county on February 24, 1833. 

An incident something like that which occurred in William Bow- 
yer 's family over the little negress, Ann, took place at James Pendle- 
ton's home shortly afterwards. The Pendletons had a little son, Will- 
iam D., of whom they were intensely fond. A troop of Indians came 
along one day, the chief carrying a female papoose which he offered to 
trade even for little William. Mr. Pendleton studied the matter a while 
and then shook his head; the Indian chief, as the red man's habit was 
in barter, then added a bundle of deer-skins to the papoose; still no 
trade being made, he had his bucks fetch out a lot of wild honey and 
some turkeys, and even went so far as to promise the boy's father that 
he would make William a great and illustrious chief, one who should 
reflect glory upon his father's name. Mr. Pendleton appeared to be 
very much struck by these honors, and the Indian chief looked eagerly 
for a consummation of the trade, but at last Mr. Pendleton, with appar- 
ent reluctance, declined the offer. The Indian didn't get mad over it; 
he just concluded that his pile hadn't been tall enough to reach Mr. 
Pendleton's price and he departed without further ado. 

By the spring of 1834 the settlers in the Locust Creek Country had 
increased considerably. The Black Hawk War was over and the white 
men who had been serving in it returned to their claims. 



HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 17 

Then came Col. John (''Jack") Holland, the founder of Linneus, 
the county seat. Holland 's cabin was built within the present Qity limits 
of Linneus. John Yount and David Curtis were the constructors. 
James F. Pendleton, George Cason, John Kemper and son, Enoch and 
Luke Patrick returned in the spring of 1835. William Pendleton started 
for the same section, but met with an accident resulting in his death. 
When near the crossing of Yellow Creek, close to the fork, where there 
is a good bridge now, one of the teams stalled and he took hold of the 
wheel in an effort to lift it out of the mire. With the application of his 
full strength came instant death. Apoplexy or heart disease was 
ascribed as the cause. His was the first death in Linn county. 

It was during these days that the pioneer lived on the fat of the 
land. The finest game was plentiful, and to those hardy hunters who 
loved a little excitement plenty was furnished by the bears and panthers 
that were fairly numerous throughout the Locust Creek Country. 

The wolves were troublesome. There were three varieties, the 
black, the gray and the coyote or prairie wolf. The latter was the 
same sort of animal that Mark Twain encountered on the western plains 
in the 60s, and which he described so entertainingly in his story of the 
west, ''Roughing It." Sheep and hogs had to be carefully guarded, 
and even then many were lost through the rapacity of these long, cun- 
ning animals of the forest. 

There were no trading points nearer than Brunswick-on-the-Mis- 
souri and Keytesville, the county seat of Chariton county. A mill was 
at Keytesville, a circumstance which gave that town much prestige. The 
settlers from a wide stretch of country patronized the mill there, and 
got their supplies. It frequently happened, in a busy season, that the 
mill would get far behind and the farmers would have to wait their turn 
for days and sometimes weeks. It was the business of the head miller 
to see to it that each man was accommodated in the order of his arrival, 
and his wagon or sacks were marked so as to indicate his turn. While 
waiting the settlers would fish, hunt, pitch horse-shoes and talk politics. 
When a newspaper or a publication of any kind was brought in it was 
a Godsend to the waiting patrons, and would be discussed eagerly. 
Sometimes information several months old was fresh news in the back- 
woods of Missouri. 

In times of urgency the mill would run day and night to supply the 
slemand. 

The records show that Linneus was built on land that was a gift 
from Jack Holland and wife, the first settlers there, it being understood 
that the town was to be the permanent county seat. 



18 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

During the evnts above noted the Locust Creek Country was tribu- 
tary to Chariton county, but as it filled up rapidly the population soon 
became large enough to justify an organization of its own. So in the 
winter of 1836-37 a bill was passed by the legislature establishing Linn 
county, the boundary of which may be found further along in this sketch. 
This bill was approved by the governor, Daniel Dunklin, January 6, 
1837. The act of organization included also the counties of Livingston, 
Macon and Taney. 

From the date of the organization Linn county developed rapidly. 
People began coming in from other parts of Missouri and also from 
other states. The fame of the Locust Creek Country as a rich agricul- 
tural section, fine hunting ground and its delightful climate spread far 
and wide. 

The first mechanical. enterprise was a horse-mill put up by William 
and Jesse Bowj^er, on the east side of Locust Creek. That mill did most 
of the work that had been going to Keytesville. It was erected three 
years before the organization of the county and it was operated success- 
fully for many years thereafter. The population had grown to such 
proportions that soon after the county was organized Botts ' mill began 
grinding on Parson Creek, 59-22, and Maddox and Rooker put up a 
mill on Yellow Creek, 58-18. In 1840 Seth Botts and William Bowyer 
constructed a water mill on Locust Creek, 31/0 miles from Linneus. This 
old mill was not quite completed when Mr. Bow\'er sold his interest to 
Thomas Botts, a brother of Seth. The Botts brothers completed the 
mill and operated it for many years. Linn county was thus equipped 
to do the grinding not only for its own people but for those of the 
adjoining settlements. There was not much money passed in those days, 
the miller being paid a certain percentage of the grain for his labor. 
The way he got his ready cash generally was by feeding corn thus paid 
him to hogs, and selling the hogs to buyers. 

The water-mill, crude as its construction was, filled an important 
place in meeting the needs of the pioneer. It was a sort of community 
headquarters where the people met to exchange news and information. 
If the Indians were becoming troublesome in a certain locality upstate, 
there would be some patron at the mill who would apprise the pioneers 
there of the matter and thus enable them to make preparations. Then 
there was always somebody who had with him a fairly late paper, which 
he would read to the crowd. The first mills were used only in the grind- 
ing of the corn, but later on they were improved so as to make flour of 
a fairly good quality, and saws were attached to cut the lumber. Near 
the mill was generally a good blacksmith, a skillful man who did many 



HISTOEY OF LIXN COUNTY 19 

kinds of iron work. These two industries, milling and blacksmitliing, 
were the forerunners of the great industrial development Missouri was 
destined to see. 

Among the settlers who came in after Linn county was organized 
the following are noted : James A. Clark, 19-59-20 ; Augustus W. Flour- 
ney, Section 31 ; Jeremiah Phillips, Section 36-59-21 ; John J. Flood, Sec- 
tion 19-59-20; James Howell, Clay Township; Robert Warren, Jack- 
son Township; David Mullins, Eock Creek; Meredith Brown, Parson 
Creek ; Abraham Beuable, Benton Township ; Irvin and John M. Ogan, 
Clay Township; the Ashbrooks, Grantville; Mordecai Lane, Yellow 
Creek. John Cherry, John Kemper and Chas. A. Fore and Robert C. 
Combs came to Linn county along about this time. Almost every day 
new people were coming in and the county soon became so thickly pop- 
ulated that the settlers were strong enough to resist any possible attack 
of the Indians. At that time the shadow of the red man had almost 
passed from Missouri. He left, however, many interesting evidences 
of his occupation. There were camps along the creeks and numerous 
mounds where the dead were buried and where oftentimes the archae- 
ologist can find most interesting specimens of Indian handicraft. These 
consist of battle-axes, pipes, arrow-heads and now and then pieces of 
pottery. 

Professor Rover, who came from Howard county, taught the first 
school, in 1837, on 24-58-21. He had from 18 to 20 pupils, among whom 
were the following: James and Elizabeth Beckett, James and Robert 
Tisdale, James, Kenneth and Martha Newton, James M. Prailie, Re- 
becca Pendleton and the children of David Mullins. R. W. Foster con- 
ducted a school one winter northwest of Professor Rover's school. Mr. 
Foster afterwards became county surveyor and county agent for Linn 
county. Allen Gillispie taught the first school at Linneus. 

The Rev. Mr. Wilhite, Baptist, was one of the early ministers to the 
settlers. There being no church buildings, he held meetings in groves 
in good weather and in the settlers ' cabins when it was inclement. The 
Rev. John Baker was another of the early preachers operating in the 
Locust Creek Country. He was a Primitive Baptist. 

The first recorded wedding was that of Henry Cherry, son of John 
Cherry, and Miss Susan Kemper, daughter of Enoch Kemper, which 
occurred in 1838. Mr. Kemper for a long time held the position of 
county clerk. His death occurred while occupying that office. 

It will be noted that, a while back, the death of William Pendleton 
was spoken of as the first to have occurred in the county. The old 
records also speak of the demise of James Copeland as being the first. 



20 HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 

At any rate, both died in the same year, 1834. Copeland lived on Locust 
Creek, just west of Linneus. The next recorded death was that of 
Jubal Hurt. The administration of Hurt's estate, in 1838, is among 
the first recorded. 

Mr. Webber, a widower, died in 1839, and his remains were buried 
at Linneus. In December of the same year John D. Grant, who sur- 
veyed Linneus and conducted the first sale of town-lots, died. Eobert 
W. Foster, the school teacher referred to above, was appointed surveyor 
to fill Mr. Grant's place. 

In 1834 a physician came all the way from Keytesville to see a 
brother of John Yount, who was here. Among the early physicians to 
move to Linn county were Drs. N. J. Dryden and Isaac Ralph. For 
many years they were the only resident physicians, and their practice 
required them to travel over a wide stretch of country, because phy- 
sicians were few and far between. Oftentimes the Linn county pioneer 
doctors would have calls that took them clear up to the Iowa line. 

The Rev. Jesse Goins was a Baptist minister who quite lived up to 
his name. He traveled through Linn, Livingston, Grundy and Sullivan 
counties, preaching at the various settlements. He was always a most 
welcome guest at all of them. His home was in Linn county. Another 
early-day minister, also a Baptist, was the Rev. A. F. Martin, whose 
duty called him from settlement to settlement just as it did the Rev. 
Mr. Goins. Hard on the heels of the Baptist preachers came the Meth- 
odist circuit riders, who worked shoulder to shoulder in advancing the 
cause of the Master among the settlers. 

Linn county, as has been indicated before, was settled largely by 
Kentuckians. Many had come from that state years before and settled 
first in Howard, Chariton and Boone counties, but later moved into the 
Locust Creek Country because of certain material advantages there. 
There was a strong settlement up on Parson Creek, Jackson Town- 
ship, in 1838. Benton, the territory now included within the boundary 
of Baker and Y^ellow Creek Townships, began to settle rapidly also 
about this time, and on up to 1840 and beyond. By 1840 Linn county 
had become well established. Its population, numbering 2,245, was dis- 
tributed in the various townships with fair regularity. 



CHAPTER III 

The Settlers' Markets — Story of a Famous State Highway — Route of 
the Gold Seekers — Troublous Times in High Water — Thrilling 
Rescue at a Mill Dam — Freighting to Hannibal — The Brawny Stage 
Driver — Low Prices for Country Produce — "Wild Cat" Currency 
— Curious Legal Tender — Origin of the "Bit" — Lax Methods of 
Banking — A Cattleman's Bible — Deer Hams, 25 Cents Each — The 
Pioneer's Wife. 

In the 40s the principal markets were Brunswick, Keytesville, 
Boonville and Glasgow Landing. There were regular trails, well known 
to the settlers, leading to all these towns. In the course of a few years, 
however, regular state roads were established across the state from 
Hannibal to St. Joseph, and upstate from the Missouri river towns to 
points north. Right here Col. George W. Martin's description of one 
of these old state highways will be of interest: 

"One of the oldest landmarks in this part of Missouri is the old 
Bloomington road, also known as the old state road. This road began 
in the eastern part of north Missouri, running west through Blooming- 
ton, at that time the county seat of Macon county, from which it received 
its name, entering Linn county about two miles north of Bucklin, con- 
tinuing west and passing north of Brookfield, near Linn Center school 
house. 

"It didn't run on section lines as the roads now run, but ran as 
the crow flies. Passing through Linneus and a mile west of that place 
it forked, the right branch going through Trenton. The highway was 
the main thoroughfare through north Missouri long before and after 
the Hannibal and St. Joe railroad was built and has a history not well 
known to the younger generation or to those who have immigrated 
hither since the country has been fenced up and the roads put on the 
section lines. 

"Over this old-time highway the early gold seekers traveled in ox 
wagons with their little earthly belongings, going to California and 
Oregon. They were called forty-niners, as that was the year of the 
great western immigration. Later, about 1858-59, the Pike 's Peak gold 
hunters traveled this same route. 

21 



22 HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 

''The road was vastly more important than Davy Crockett's turn- 
pike road, which former Senator Warner frequently mentioned by way 
of illustration in his speeches. He said : ' It began like other turnpike 
roads should and ran along until it merged into a wagon road and from 
a wagon road it dwindled into a bridle path, then into a squirrel track 
and up a tree. ' 

"But the Bloomington road was to the north Missourians what the 
Appian way was to the old Eomans, and since the Appian way can still 
be traced after 2,000 years have intervened, the old Bloomington road 
is still visible here and there where it once passed through a farm or 
neighborhood. As many as 25 covered wagons have been counted in 
one day from a given point, all bound for California. It crossed the 
Missouri river at St. Joseph, where it divided into the old Santa Fe 
trail and other branches known as the California and Oregon trail. 

* ' In the spring of 1858 the emigrants experienced many difficulties 
on account of the high water. Locust Creek was out of its banks more 
or less all summer. The bridges were gone and the movers had to be 
taken across the streams on rafts and in skiffs. This was at the old 
water mill due west of Linneus, belonging to J. P. Withrow at that time. 
One day, while there was a family crossing the creek, which was bank 
full, the raft broke loose from the rope which it was being pulled over 
by, floated down the swift stream with a boy on the raft and was near- 
ing the mill dam, over which it soon would have dashed the young man 
into the churning waters below. The man who was ferrying them over 
the swollen stream saw the young man's perilous condition, jumped into 
a skiff that was tied to the bank, cut the rope and rowed with all his 
might after the floating raft. "When he got as close to the dam as he 
dared to go he told the boy to jump, which he did and landed safely in 
the skiff, but none too soon, as the raft went over the mill dam as he 
left it. 

"The man who rescued the youth from the watery grave was Enoch 
Kemper, familiarly known as 'Dick' Kemper, a well known pioneer 
citizen of that neighborhood. 

"The farmers used to drive their cattle and hogs over this road 
to Hannibal, which was a gateway to eastern markets. From Hannibal 
they were loaded on steamboats and shipped to Cincinnati, as that was 
the great pork market of that day. Chicago hadn't gained its great im- 
portance as a meat market then. 

"There was but little road work done in those days, yet the 
road was always in good condition to travel until you came to a creek. 
Bridges were few and there was more or less hazard in crossing. 



HISTORY OF LIXN COUNTY 23 

''Dry goods, together with a rather liberal supply of 'wet goods,' 
groceries, and all other kinds of merchandise, were transported from 
Hannibal to Bloomington, Linneus and other points further west and 
northwest with ox teams, the freighters camping by the wayside wher- 
ever night overtook them and where wood and water were in evidence. 

"James A. Moore, of Brookfield, president of the Moore bank and 
one of the largest land holders in Linn county, then quite a young man, 
was for a time engaged in the freighting business and says it took about 
three and one half days to drive with unloaded wagons from Linneus to 
Hannibal and about eight or nine days for the return journey. 

"A regular stage service, the western terminus of which was St. 
Joseph, was conducted over this old road. It is one of the traditions 
told by old-time citizens of Linneus that many of the stage drivers were 
rather of the wild and woolly variety and that Robert Combs, father 
of the late Joseph Combs, who was a giant in strength, frequently found 
it necessary in the interests of peace and good order to give an occa- 
sional stage driver a downright good basting, which was usually con- 
sidered by the punished individual in the light of proper and necessary 
discipline — a part of the business of a stage driver — and never treas- 
ured up in the way of anger or of a vindictive spirit against Uncle Bob, 
as they and others called him. 

"With the completion of the Hannibal and St. Joseph road the day of 
the big freight wagons and the patient ox teams and of the stage coach 
on the old Bloomington road passed away. Instead of the long blast of 
the horn from the stage box, awakening the people with its silvery notes, 
a slick young fellow now passes through the cars and yells something 
like 'Katzenjammerville !' By both methods the traveler understood he 
was getting somewhere." 

The price of products of all kinds was very low. Farmers were 
only offered from 3 to 5 cents a dozen for eggs. Live stock was also 
very cheap. The farmers had plenty to eat, but very little ready money. 
In fact from the date of the organization of the county until far along 
in the 40s ready cash was very scarce. The country generally had suf- 
fered severely during the era of wild-cat- banks. The generation of 
today scarcely understands the embarrassment caused in all channels 
of business by the early day method of banking. 

The term "wild-cat" was used because the original issues of doubt- 
ful currency had a picture of a wild-cat on them. Today the name is 
frequently heard, but it is applied to mining schemes and other ventures 
where there is a question as to the genuineness of the enterprise. The 
early day paper money was also spoken of as "blue pup" and "red 



34 HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 

dog." Whenever a cashier received a deposit of mixed issues of money 
he had to consult his bank reporter to learn the standing of the insti- 
tutions which issued them, or whether such institutions were yet in 
existence. Some of the money passed the test and was accepted; a 
great deal was discarded as worthless. 

Parties traveling across the country would have to have their west- 
ern money changed for eastern money, and vice versa. 

In the early part of the 19tli century Missourians traded with each 
other by using cattle, hides, pelts, twists of tobacco and bits of lead as 
legal tender. There was an urgent demand for small change, and it 
became so necessary that they took the Spanish Real and cut it in half 
for a half dollar, into a quarter for a quarter of a dollar, and into 
eighths for a "bit." Many will recall the expressions ''two bits," 
' ' four bits, ' ' six bits, ' ' etc. This is the origin of the term ' ' bit. ' ' Some- 
times even a bit was divided and it was then called a ' ' tip. ' ' 

Along in the later 50s gold dust was handed into the banks of the 
western states as deposits, and the banks' cashiers became so skillful 
in handling the gold that they could tell at a glance, not only how much 
the gold presented to them would assay, but they could judge with 
almost absolute certainty the mining district from whence it came. 
They would put the dust in long pans and hold their hands over it while 
they would blow out the dirt and dross. 

Some of the early day banks were chartered and some were not. 
Capital was required, but no evidence was demanded concerning it. A 
certain bank went to the wall and the inventory disclosed that it was 
possessed of one stove, two books, a counter, three chairs, an almanac 
and $63 in actual cash ! Stockholders were personally liable, but there 
was nothing compelling the bank to state exactly who the stockholders 
were. There were no resources and no examinations. An annual report 
was expected, but there was no penalty for a failure to make such a 
report. 

Clement Chase, a well-known western banker, once related to an 
association of Missouri bankers this incident of wild-cat days. 

"A man in Michigan sold a lot of cattle and received for them $1,000 
in such money as the country did business with in the early part of the 
19th century. The cattleman had at home two books, which he depended 
upon to settle all his problems for this world and the one to come. One 
of these books was his bank reporter and the other was the Bible. 
"Wlien he got back home with his money he reached for the reporter and 
found to his chagrin that $200 of the money that he had received for his 
cattle was on banks that had gone out of existence. There was nothing 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 25 

in the world behind it and it was not worth the paper it was printed on. 
While considering this emergency he turned to his Bible and the first 
thing that met his eye was this: 'Thou shalt owe no man.' So he took 
that wild-cat $200 and settled a bill he had owed to a party who had not 
been reading up on the bank reporter." 

Here are some prices that ruled in the Locust Creek country during 
the financial depression that followed 1837: Cows, $7 to $10; horses, 
$25 to $40 ; hogs, $1.25 to $1.50 ; a nice veal calf would sell for 75 cents ; 
honey from the bee tree was worth 25 cents a gallon in exchange for 
store goods. Deer hams were quoted at 25 cents each. Farm hands 
were paid all the way from 5 to 50 cents a day, but that included board 
and lodging. The prices for splitting rails was 25 cents a liundred. 

In spite of the low prices for labor and products of the farm the 
early settler did not become discouraged. He looked to the future, and 
clearly saw the era of prosperity which came later. He lived well, 
whether he had any money or not. He worked hard and was rewarded 
with a magnificent appetite and splendid health. The finest eating in 
the world was his, and it didn't cost him a cent. The partner of the 
pioneer, his noble, industrious wife, deserves to share equally with him 
the honors that acrue from the building up of this country. It was her 
patient, uncomplaining toil that produced most of the garments worn 
by the members of the family, that kept the house in order and made 
things comfortable and pleasant for everybody. She learned the use 
of the simple herbs and remedies that could be obtained in the forest, 
and knew how to apply them to the ailing ones. Her hands were never 
idle and she brought up her children under a rigid discipline of in- 
dustry. The Missouri pioneer has made a great name for himself in 
history, but upon the pedestal that shall be erected for him justice 
demands that ample room should be left for his patient and loyal wife. 



CHAPTER IV 

The Era of Prosperity — Development of Schools and Churches — Death 
of Senator Linn — Presidential Election of 1844 — Shadow of the 
Mexican War — Ccdl for Volunteers — Quick Response from Linn 
County — Incidents of the Campaign in New Mexico — A Veteran's 
Interesting Narrative — The Enemy Burned American Soldiers — 
Grim Retaliation hy the U. S. Forces Under Sterling Price — List 
of Linn County Veterans in War of 1846 — The Rush to the Gold 
Lands — More Wealth in Missouri than ivas Found in California. 

From the year 1840 dates the most material progress of Linn 
County. In an election taken two years before, 168 votes were cast. 
The voting population was possibly somewhat in excess of that number. 
There had been some advancement along all lines of endeavor, but from 
1840 on the development of the county was more systematic. Schools 
and churches were established in all the settlements and considerable 
attention given to the improvement of the liighAvays. 

In 1843 occurred the death of Senator Lewis F. Linn, for w^hom 
Linn county and its county seat had been named. The Senator died at 
Ste. Genevieve. The general assembly appropriated $900 for a 
monument to his memory. 

The presidential election of 1844 caused much excitement through 
the country. Texas had knocked at the door of the United States for 
admission, and was accepted by an act passed March 1, 1845, the ad- 
mission into the Union to take effect December 29, 1845. Mexico, 
strongly averse to losing this great domain, appealed to the sword. 
United States troops hurried to the Rio Grande. Volunteers from 
Linn, Boone, Chariton, Carroll, Livingston, Randolph and Monroe 
counties in Missouri, rushed to the nation's standard in response to a 
call made by Governor Edwards in May, 1846, Sterling Price, who 
afterwards became a noted Confederate leader in the Civil war, resigned 
his seat in congress and was given a colonel's commission by President 
Polk, with authority to raise a regiment to reinforce the Army of the 
West. The volunteers concentrated at Ft. Leavenworth, iKan., in 
August, where an election by the troops endorsed Sterling Price 's com- 

26 



HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 27 

mission as colonel and D. D. Mitchell was chosen lieutenant-colonel. 
The Missouri troops proceeded to Santa Fe, arriving there September 
28, 1846. New Mexico had recently been seized by the United States 
troops under General Kearney, and Santa Fe, the capital, was surren- 
dered to them. So when the Missouri troops arrived the American 
flag floated over the citadel of that famous old town. Howard H. Rich- 
ardson, who is still living, was a member of Company 0, Missouri Vol- 
unteers. The Linn county volunteers composed Company N. A de- 
scription of the campaign by Mr. Richardson, which was given to the 
writer not long ago, covers events in which the Linn county volunteers 
took part or witnessed. 

*'We were armed with old-fashioned flint-lock rifles," said Mr. 
Richardson. "You pulled the trigger and the hammer came down with 
a noise something like this — ' chwack ! ' Then in a little while the pow- 
der ignited and went ' sw^ang ! ' An ounce ball and three buckshot then 
began traveling over the hills hunting for some gilt-spangled greaser. 
The' country was full of Mexicans and their red-skinned allies. Neither 
were worth much as soldiers. The guns of the Mexicans were a great 
deal more ornamental than useful, and they didn't know how to shoot 
straight with them. The plan of campaign pursued by the enemy 
seemed to be to try to strike terror into the hearts of the people by all 
sorts of atrocities. Y^ou might call it a sort of guerrilla warfare. 

"We were reconnoitering about 15 miles out of Santa Fe one day 
when our scouts came in and reported that 12 greasers had caught three 
detached Americans, and were burning them at the stake in Indian 
styleo We had heard about that manner of fighting and were prepared 
for it. The main body rushed forward, and the terrible tale was only 
too well authenticated by the awful sight. We caught six of the tor- 
turers, but the balance got away. The prisoners were taken back to 
Santa Fe, and given a fair trial. Their guilt was established abso- 
lutely and they were sentenced to hang. They asked to have a priest, 
and I was appointed as one of their guards during the services attend- 
ing the forgiveness of their sins. At the time of this ceremony a rope 
was around the neck of each of the condemned. I understand Spanish 
very well, but they talked in a tongue unknown to me. While the 
execution was pending word reached Colonel Price that 15,000 Mexicans 
were headed for town to rescue the prisoners and slay the garrison. 
If the information had any effect on the commander he did not show it. 
Then Thuston, the interpreter, told Colonel Price that certain parties 
— mentioning men of high degree — would pay $50,000 for the release 



28 HISTOKY OF LINN COUNTY 

of the prisoners. I was standing alongside tlie Colonel when he made 
his reply, and this is what he told the interpreter : 

" 'Seiior Tlmston, you tell those people that these prisoners killed 
and burned my men ; they have been fairly tried and sentenced to hang 
and hang they shall ! l^'our whole government hasn 't got money enough 
to buy them ! ' 

'*It was the first time I ever saw the Colonel real angry. His fine 
face actually blazed. There was no more talk of clemency. The execu- 
tion was in the public square. When the condemned took their places 
on the scaffold one man looked piteously around and cried : 

" '0 Americanos! Americanos! Forgive us! 

"The necks of five were broken by the drop. The knot slipped 
on the sixth one and Colonel Price directed- Corporal Sam Eichardson, 
a St. Louis man, to fix it. Richardson gave the knot a twitch and said : 

" 'Now, see if that will suit you, damn you!' 

"Colonel Price heard the remark. 

" 'Corporal Richardson,' he said, 'not another w^ord out of you, 
sir!' 

"In the winter of 1846-47 the Mexicans who held Taos, up on the 
Rio Grande, fortified the place, and sent down a black flag. It was the 
government's object to hustle the Mexicans out of New Mexico as fast 
as possible and we w^ent up there with 600 men and five cannon. The 
town was on a hillside and you had to cross the stream to get to it. 
There was a heavy snow on the ground and the soldiers had to walk 
ahead and tramp down a road for the cannon. The enemy garrisoned 
an adobe church and by a brisk fire held us back until we got our 
cannon in action. Colonel Price himself lent a hand at the gun wheels 
while getting them in position. He wore shoulder straps and a belt 
made out of buffalo hide. Mexican balls struck him three times that 
day on his accoutrement, but he stayed in the fight. The cannon soon 
knocked holes in the church and other buildings and the Americans 
went in mth a rush. The first man to enter was blown to pieces by a 
bomb, but the others followed closely, with bayonets and swords ready. 
The garrison was killed or scattered. It had initiated the black flag 
and did not ask quarter. That fight ended regular warfare in New 
Mexico, and our troops had no more battles. But we were busy for 
some time looking after guerrilla bands. 

"In September, 1847, we started home, in obedience to orders, 
and while on the way we encountered a provision train headed for the 
soldiers further south. Before meeting the train we had heard there 
was a teamster in ii who had been scalped and left for dead by the 



HISTORY OF LINX COUNTY 29 

Indians. The teamster had loitered off from the company to hunt and 
the Indians, who always hnng around waiting for such chances, had 
promptly assailed the isolated man. When the caravan approached. 
Captain Jackson, our commander, rode up to the boss driver and asked : 

" 'Have you got a *' bareheaded" man aboard?' 

*' 'Yes,' said the driver. 

'' 'Where is he!' 

" 'Back a ways in one of the wagons.' 

" 'Deadr 

" 'Not by several years.' 

"Then what do you think our captain didf W^hy, he got the boss 
driver to pull back the skin on the poor fellow's head, and then propped 
him up in the wagon so all could see, and made us file slowly past. 

"The captain stopped his horse and grimly saw to it that not a 
trooper failed to view the spectacle. 

" 'Next time you boys want to stroll off on a hunt by your lone- 
some,' said he, 'just think about this poor chap here.' 

"Then we understood the purpose of his ghastly object lesson. 

"It was almost impossible for one or two men to get any distance 
from the camp without hearing an arrow whiz. Yet there wasn't a 
man in the troop who was not always wildly anxious to try his luck 
by himself. 

" 'I'll watch out, Captain,' an over-confident soldier would say; 
'I just want to go across the hills there to hunt a little game. I'll 
divide with you.' 

"But it was generally the red-skinned hunters who got the 'game,' 
for they were marvelous shots and cunning as death." 
RosTEE OF Volunteers From Linn County 

Under the command of Col. Sterling Price was Capt. Thomas 
Barbee's mounted volunteers from Linn county. They were known as 
Company N, Second Regiment of Missouri Mounted Volunteers. Fol- 
lowing is a list of the officers and privates : 

Captain, Thomas Barbee. 

First lieutenant, T. G. West. 

Second lieutenant, John G. Flournoy. 

Third lieutenant, M. H. Hamilton. 

Non-Commissioned Officers — John N. Barr, William Bowyer, John 
M. Neece, Thomas Monroe, John M. Pratt, William Barbee, Robert 
Morrow, Chapman Lightner. 

Privates — John Walkup, W. R. Monroe, Daniel Monroe, Benjamin 
Ralson, J. H. Calaway, Green Calaway, William Mays, M. H. Davis, 



30 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

Albert Nickerson, James W. Talley, T. L. Watson, H. D. Watson, Jesse 
Watson, Jolm Nagle, R. W. Foster, David De Mastes, H. S. Bragg, 
B. T. Tolson, David H. Allen, M. M. Bryant, Henry S. Findley, Alex- 
ander Findley, G. W. Neece, R. Sights, M. Grossman, James Agle, James 
M. Clarkson, E. S. Moore, Robert McCollnm, Isaac McCollum, Jesse 
Yocum, Thomas B. Moore, George W. Zinn, John E. Porter, A. J. 
AVilson, James Heron, James M. Heron, James M. Hughes, James 
Whorter, Jesse W. Lowe, John Carson, Johnston D. Gamble, Arnold 
Chance, Isaac D. Enfield, James Enfield, Andrew Estes, James A. 
Findley, Robert N. H. Gray, Robert Gray, Harrison Hawkins, W. T. 
Hancock, Charles Lemmont, Fred Maize, J. J. McCown, Perry 
McCollum, Calvin Rose, J. M. Spriggs, J. J. Sights, Frederick Schweiss, 
E. T. Taylor, W. B. Thompson, Calvin Vanbeber. 

The greater number of these have passed into the beyond. They 
did their work as loyal soldiers and as faithful citizens. They were 
engaged in many exciting battles, and bore the United States banner 
aloft to victory. When the Linn county troopers returned they were 
given an ovation by the folks at home. There was a grand barbecue, 
speechmaking and a very happy day to all concerned. 

With the close of the Mexican War the soldier threw away his sword 
and took up the plow. The next few years were busy and fruitful ones 
in Linn county. Missouri was filling up rapidly, towns were springing 
up everywhere and land was being industriously cultivated. Right in 
the midst of all this activity came the news of the discovery of gold in 
California. Linn county was just eleven years old when the workmen 
at Colonel Sutter's sawmill at Colma, California, in January, 1848, 
struck some curious stuff in the channel, which turned out to be gold. 
For a while an effort was made to keep the discovery hidden. Sutter 
began building a mill and a load of the ore was sent to Sacramento to 
be tested. The amazing result of the test was made known in San 
Francisco and from there the news spread all over the world, growing 
richer in color the further it traveled. This soon became the main topic 
of conversation in the nation. No legend from California was too wild 
to be believed. Men supposed that the hills and valleys were literally 
capped with gold, and that one might go out with pick and spade and 
enrich himself forever. The idea is not at all exaggerated. Mark 
Twain, who went west long after the gold excitement in 1849, tells how 
he separated himself from his old mining companions and hurried out 
into the hills to find a gold mine all by himself. He returned with his 
pockets laden with curious stuff that glittered and he complacently 
awaited the enthusiastic confirmation of his more experienced comrades. 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 31 

They glanced over the stuff, smiled contemptuously and said it was 
nothing but mica, not worth 10 cents a ton. Mark Twain's idea about 
gold in the West was pretty much shared by nine out of every ten 
men in those hopeful days of 1849. 

It was a hard and dangerous journey to the gold coast. Insur- 
ance companies charged a stiff rate, more than they did on soldiers 
who went to war. For this reason the argonauts assembled them- 
selves into bands or companies, elected a captain and lieutenants and 
traveled westward with all the precaution that military parties exer- 
cised in time of war. Oxen were used to haul the heavy wagons, with 
their precious freight of bacon, meal, beans, canned goods and ammuni- 
tion. The further west the caravan traveled the greater the prices 
advanced on these commodities. If a caravan run out of supplies 
it cost a small fortune to renew them after getting west of St. Joseph. 
Some men made more money by selling provisions to the gold seekers 
than they would have made in mining. At the fords of streams the 
travelers had to pay toll to the man who claimed to own the crossing. 
At night regular sentinels would be put out to guard against surprises 
by hostile Indians and roving bands of bad men. The wagons would 
be located in a circle, with the horses and oxen in the center, forming 
a sort of fort to resist attacks. 

From dawn to nightfall along the Linn county highway the white- 
winged prairie schooners could be seen wending their way westward. 
The men journeying with them were a hopeful lot. They were all 
going to mine gold and enrich themselves. 

This great westward trek of the Americans in 1849 caused the 
real development of the western coast and the great country between. 
Although much gold was taken from California at the time, that was 
insignificant as compared with the immense good done in opening up 
the western country to civilization and settlement. 

The sturdy race of men that had settled in Linn county caught 
the gold contagion as naturally as the sparks fly up. Human nature 
couldn't resist chasing such a rainbow as that which graced the gold 
coast. About 120 citizens of Linn county took part in this memorable 
pilgrimage. They had the same fortune that came to others with like 
ambitions. Some few died in the far west, others made fair strikes 
in California and returned with some of the precious metal for which 
they had sacrificed so much. The majority, perhaps, came back empty- 
handed but in no sense discouraged, and went to work to build lip 
Linn county. They found on her fruitful acres much greater gold 
mines than they had dreamed of in California. 



CHAPTER V 

The Great Drought of 1854 — Development Between 1840-60 — Increase 
in Tax Levy — Playi to Create Grant County Abandoned — Disas- 
trous Prairie Fires — Census of Leading Toivns — Severe Wind and 
Hail Storm — The '^ Locust Plague" — Governor Hardin's Procla- 
mation for Prayers — Linn County Overrun by Hordes of Rats — 
Story of the ''Bat Law" by Its Originator — A Hwmorous Poem 
by 'Gene Field— The "Biggest Thing" About the "Rat Law." 

The year 1854 brought to Missouri the greatest drought recorded 
in her history up to that time, and only one approaching it in severity 
has occurred since. 

There was no official weatherman at that time, but the old settlers 
still living in Missouri will never forget the experiences of that year. 
Crops were almost a total failure. The streams became dry and in 
some communities there was a serious question as to whether or not 
human life could be sustained. The rainfall of the year was about 
the middle of June, either the 16th or 17th. From that time on the 
sun shone with undimmed fierceness all through the summer and even 
until late in the fall. Even the birds left the country for a more 
congenial habitation. The highways were deep in dust and the stage 
coaches came in covered as if they had been out in a snowstorm. 
Each day seemed to increase the heat and misery. In some parts of 
the state the settlers became discouraged. They moved to other locali- 
ties. They did not want to live in a country where such blighting 
droughts occurred. They didn't know but what those things were a 
common experience in Missouri. 

Nothing could be done on the farms. People sat around, hoping 
for rain or something to relieve the situation. In some counties mass 
meetings were held to pray for relief. The drought continued right 
up to winter. Even the early snows seemed rainless with the dust 
and failed to furnish moisture to the parched earth. 

But nature atoned for the chastisement the following year. In 
1855 there was one of the largest crops ever produced in Missouri. 
Garden vegetables thrived lustily, and the old inhabitants will tell you 

32 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 33 

that never before nor since had fresh vegetables tasted quite so good. 
Since that time Missouri has had dry years and wet years, but nothing 
as devastating as the summer of 1854. That was the supreme test, 
and those who lived in Missouri from that time to this have long since 
forgiven the old state for its one great blunder. 

The wooden bridges built across the streams of Linn county failed 
to stand the test of a tremendous heavy rainfall that occurred in the 
year 1856. With one exception every bridge in the county was washed 
down stream. The loss was not great, because the structures were 
cheap affairs, but the experience taught a valuable lesson in bridge 
building and thereafter the County Court adopted a policy of bulling 
stronger bridges. 

From 1840 to 1860 Linn county kept abreast of other counties in 
Missouri in development and increase of population. In 1840 the tax 
levy was a little over $700, and in 1860 it was over $9,000. The county's 
progress was steadily onward up to the Civil War. That unfortunate 
event retarded the growth in all communities, and Linn county suffered 
with the rest. 

There was a proposition advanced in 1867 to organize a new 
county, to be known as Grant county and to be formed from portions 
of Linn, Macon and Chariton counties. Bucklin, a thriving village, 
was designated as the county seat. There were many friends to the 
scheme, but it was never carried through. 

The fall of that year was noted for many prairie fires occurring 
in various parts of the county. These fires were particularly destruc- 
tive in the neighborhood of Brookfield. Many farmers sustained heavy 
losses on hay, grain, fences, etc. John Ryan, who lived near Bucklin, 
lost his house, barn and much other property from these disastrous 
fires. The railroad company also suffered greatly because of them, 
as it was hard to keep the locomotives from emitting sparks on the 
grades, and many suits were brought against the company for fire 
damage. 

From the year 1870 Linn county's growth was in about the same 
ratio as that of the state. Brookfield, from a town of 1,156 in 1868, 
has developed into an important railroad center with a population of 
5,749 (census 1910). It is the commercial metropolis of the county. 

Marceline, a town which sprang into life with the building of the 
Santa Fe railroad in 1887, is the division point of the great Santa Fe 
double track system between Kansas City and Ft. Madison, and has a 
population of 3,920. The population of other important towns of Linn 
county, according to the census of 1910, is as follows: Linneus, the 



34 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

county seat, 882 ; Laclede, 740 ; Bucklin, 790 ; Browning, 629 ; Meadville, 
580. 

A severe wind and hail storm visited Linn county the night of 
June 18, 1875. The storm continued throughout the following day 
and did immense damage throughout the county, especially in the 
vicinity of Laclede. So terrific was the wind that the peoj^le in some 
of the towns took refuge in cellars and basements. Many roofs were 
blown from houses and bams and the streets were filled with dismantled 
trees and foliage. Great damage was done to crops and fencing. 
Some of those who passed through the storm declare that they found 
hailstones as large as walnuts. 

That same year Missouri was visited by a great drought and hard 
on the heels of it came the grasshoppers in countless swarms. So 
great was the disaster wrought to crops by the insects that Governor 
Hardin, at the behest of a great many good people all over the state, 
issued a proclamation for prayers. This proclamation was as follows : 

"Whereas, owing to failure and loss of crops much suffering has 
been endured by many of our people during the past few months, and 
similar calamities are pending upon larger communities, and probably 
may extend to the whole state, and if not abated will eventuate in sore 
distress and famine: 

"A\^ierefore, Be it known that the 3d day of June, proximo, is 
hereby appointed and set apart as a day of fasting and prayer that 
Almighty God may be invoked to remove from our midst these impend- 
ing calamities and to grant instead the blessings of abundance and 
plenty; and the people and all of the officers of the state are hereby 
requested to desist during that day from their usual employments 
and to assemble at their places of worship for humble and devout 
prayer, and to otherwise observe the day as one for fasting and prayer. 

' ' In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand and caused to 
be affixed the great seal of the state of Missouri. 

''Done at the City of Jefferson this seventeenth day of May, in 
the year of our Lord One Thousand Eight Hundred and Seventy-five. 

"By the Governor, 

"C. H. Haedin. 

"Michael K. McGrath, 

"Secretary of State." 

The proclamation of Governor Hardin was universally respected 
throughout Missouri. As a result of the faith shown by the inhabitants 
the record says: 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 35 

''On the very next day heavy rains set in. Up to that time the 
long continued drought had been general in Missouri, though slight 
rains had fallen in the spring months of 1875. Since the proclamation 
and its observance, however, the rains became heavy and frequent. 

"The grasshoppers began to go about June 11. A strong south- 
west wind drove them forth into the interior of the state, but in a day 
or two the wind swept to the east, and by the 15th the pests, which had 
so long been threatening the farmers of Missouri, were entirely gone. 
The next year they came again, but did no damage, and since that time 
they have not appeared. The farmers began at once to retrieve their 
losses. They planted the crops again and, the season being favorable 
from that time on, the yield was bountiful." 

The grasshoppers started on their visit to Missouri from the 
mountains in 1874. It is said that their numbers were so great that 
they almost darkened the heavens. They quickly overran Colorado, 
passed on through Kansas, and in the summer of 1875 invaded Mis- 
souri. The farmers planted their corn, but it was devoured as fast 
as it came up. They planted it again, hoping that the grasshoppers 
would leave, but when the corn began to appear above the soil the 
voracious insects were there and blighted it as if swept by a forest fire. 
All sorts of expedients were resorted to in the hopes of getting rid of 
the plag-ue. Trenches were dug around fields, bonfires built so that 
the heat and smoke would drift against the insects, but still the grass- 
hoppers held grimly on, the records tell us, until Governor Hardin's 
proclamation was acted upon. 

The back taxes due and uncollected in Linn county on January 1, 
1878, amounted to $6,000. This included the taxes left unpaid at the 
close of the Civil War. Many other Missouri counties were in the same 
predicament and strong efforts were made to round up the delinquents. 
As far along as 1882 there was still due quite a sum from the delin- 
quents' list. Of later years, however, a regular county collector has 
been put on the job and under an efficient back tax law his work is 
much more satisfactory than that accomplished in the early days of 
the county's history. 

In a history of Linn county printed in 1882 is this curious state- 
ment of what was known as the "Rat Plague" : "Some five years ago 
north Missouri was infested with an army of rats. They seemed to 
exist everywhere and were terribly destructive. The legislature in the 
winter of 1876-77 authorized the counties which were overrun with 
them to pay 5 cents per head when presented to the number of fifty and 



36 HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 

upwards. This worked to a charm, some counties paying out from 
$1,500 to $2,000 each, and it exterminated the rats." 

As Linn county was in the "rat belt," the true statement of the 
rat law and its operations, as given by the author, Judge Samuel Davis, 
of Marshall, Missouri, may be of interest here : 

"Nobody has ever printed that rat story of mine just right," 
remarked Judge Davis in a recent interview with the writer. ' ' It was 
bad enough as it was, and I've been trying these many years to help 
forget it, but every now and then it pops up somewhere, and the 
-^ Titers accuse me of doing things of which no sane man would think 
of doing. Said I run on a platform, pledging that I would get a law 
passed making it unconstitutional for a man to have a rat about his 
place, and that is why I was elected. I plead not guilty. But I was 
the cause of the rat bill passing, and through my efforts it was the 
law of this state for eleven years. I was in the house, though, before 
I framed my bill. Am I talking too fast for you? 

"As the boys would say nowadays, the rats were a 'fierce propo- 
sition' in some parts of Missouri that year. All the plagues of Egypt 
would be as 'flinch' to poker in comparison. When a man would get 
up of a morning he would have to shake the rats out of his clothed. 
They were so thick in the fields that horses would mire to their knees 
in the holes the rats made. They climbed up on corn stalks, ate the 
grain; scampered along rail fences and played hide-and-seek around 
the trees. At nights they chased each other across the floor until sleep 
was impossible. Even in broad daylight they would gnaw their way 
into cupboards, kitchen safes and boxes. Housewives had to use the 
most extraordinary precautions to save the food supplies from them. 
The least chance to get in the rats were Johnnie-on-the-Spot, and once 
in they left nothing. 

"Wliile the rats were trying to clean out Saline and neighboring 
counties my friends elected me to the legislature. I was very young 
then, and, of course, anxious for a chance to do something for my state. 
Every man down there seemed to have a pocketful of bills to regulate 
the universe, just as they do now. One day while talking with Senator 
Sam Majors I said I believed I would put in a bill to wipe out the rats, 
at the same time explaining bow bad they were over my way. Sam 
laughed good-naturedly and told me to shoot ahead; he didn't like rats 
much himself. He never thought I'd do it, I reckon. 

"It got talked around about the capital that Sam Davis from 
Saline was going to outlaw the rats and the newspaper boys made a 
good deal of sport over it. It went on for several days, and then they 



HISTORY OF LIXN COUNTY 37, 

began to guy me ; said I was afraid to introduce my rat bill. I resolved 
to show 'em. There was an old statute about gophers and I took it 
and changed it to rats and wrote out my bill. In order that no harm 
could come to any of the counties I made the bill provide that rat scalps 
would be paid for at 5 cents per head only when delivered by one person 
in quantities of fifty and that it was optional with the county courts 
whether the offer was made or not. If the county court didn't want to 
go into the rat market it didn't have to; that was the safeguard. 

"The bill was referred to the agricultural committee, and I sup- 
posed that would be the last of it. But lo ! and behold, one morning the 
chairman of the committee came to me and said: 
" 'Sam, we indorsed your rat bill.' 
" 'You don't mean it!' I exclaimed. 

' ' ' Sure I do, ' said the chairman ; ' we think it is a good measure. ^ 
"That put it up to me to get it through. AVhen I prepared it I 
intended it as a joke, but after the committee had endorsed it, why, of 
course that meant for me to get busy. So I went to work on the 
members of the house and the result was my bill went through all right. 
' ' The next fight would be in the senate. I learned from the chair- 
man that Sam Majors was going to kill the bill by adding a whole lot 
of amendments to it, providing a reward for the scalps of cockroaches, 
mosquitoes and all sorts of insects. The president of the senate was a 
friend of mine and I told him to declare all those fool amendments out 
of order. He did so and after some little fighting the bill was passed. 
Then it went to Governor Phelps for his signature. 
"I went to see him. 

" 'Governor,' I said, 'what are you going to do with my rat bill?' 
" 'I am going to kill the dad-burned thing,' he growled; 'ain't you 
fellows got anything better to do than to pass rat bills ? ' 

" 'Now, look here. Governor,' I said, 'you know I have always been 
your friend in the house and I have never let them pass a bill over 
your veto. I am in earnest about this rat bill; the boys have been 
guying me and I have got to get it through ; my people expect it and 
they must have it. I am going to still be your friend. Governor, but 
that rat bill wants to become a law.' 

"The governor saw I was in earnest. Then he smiled, and when 
the time came he signed the bill. 

"It was about that time 'Gene Field, who was a representative of 
some paper, wrote that poetry about Sam Davis and the rat. Here 
it is." 



36 HISTORY OF LI}^N COUNTY 

The judge fished in his pocket and pulled out an old scrap of paper, 
which he carefully unfolded. This is what was on it : 

''Sam Davis, member from Saline, 
A-plodding home one night was seen 
By two old rats — forlorn and gray, 
Too shrewd to venture out by day. 
But with the moonlight's doleful hour 
They sought what they might best devour. 

*'Sam Davis paused, as well he might, 
And viewed the touching mournful sight : 
Two rats, two aged rats forlorn, 
A-browsing in the early morn ! 

Said he, 'My friends, how comes it so. 

That through the streets you rambling go? 

" 'Have you not heard the mandate hurled 
Down from the house into the world? 
That sets a price upon your head? 
That pays a bonus for rats dead? 
How comes it, then, that up and down 
You saunter through this hostile town ? ' 

"One old rat the solon eyed 
And in a squeaking voice replied : 
'Why question us? The law applies 
To rats of every age and size. 
Now tell me, is there — answer true — 
An older, bigger rat than you?' " 

' ' So you see, ' ' his honor went on, ' ' it would -never have done to let 
go my bill under fire like that, and what others were printing. I 
intended to show 'em they couldn't laugh my bill out of court. 

' ' The bill became a law, and, do you know, before the first copy of 
the Revised Statutes landed in Saline county every blamed rat picked 
up his grip and lit out! It's a fact, and our county court never paid 
out a nickel for scalps! But over in Bates and Andrews, where the 
rats were just as thick as they had been in Saline, the courts took the 
law as mandatory, and issued a notice offering a reward of 5 cents per. 
People quit farming to kill rats. Boys by the hundreds began chasing 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 39 

down the little terrors, killing and scalping them for the county. They 
said it got so bad in the court houses, where the evidence was stored, 
that people across the street had to keep their front doors shut and 
windows down. Then with characteristic thrift the Jayhawkers began 
raising rats for scalps and selling 'em to the Missouri county courts 
as the home-grown article. They even fetched rat scalps down from 
Iowa so as not to let the market go unsupplied. I guess in time they'd 
have started rat farms in China, but the two counties offering the 
bounty went broke, and that killed the industry. Wlien next election 
rolled around they sent representatives to Jefferson City pledged to 
kill my rat bill — or me. They didn't do either. My reputation was at 
stake on that bill, and I didn't propose to have it declared unconstitu- 
tional. I went to the capital and labored with my friends until they 
became convinced the rat law was altogether proper and a vitally neces- 
sary act of legislation. It was pointed out to those sent to annihilate 
it that they didn't have to buy rat scalps unless they wanted to — 
information rather late to be useful, but yet it was at hand when the 
bill passed had they looked closer. Here's the way the bill read: 

" 'It is hereby lawful for any county court in the State of Missouri 
to offer a reward not exceeding 5 cents per scalp for the destruction of 
rats. . . . Provided, that no reward shall be paid for any number 
of rats less than fifty.' Revised Statutes '79. 

*'It simply meant that it was lawful to offer the bounty if the 
county court desired to do so. It didn't have to do it. The scalps 
were to be delivered to the county clerk, who after counting them would 
issue a voucher on the treasurer. 

* ' Champ Clark finally got in the legislature and he put my rat law 
out of business. It had been on the books eleven years, however, and I 
was satisfied. 

''The rat bill gave me a reputation I've been trying to live down. 
The story that I started to brain a man who called at my house one day 
and tried to sell a 'Sam Davis Rat Trap' is a campaign lie. He never 
got that close to me — more's the pity. He lived in Vermont or some 
other foreign country and wrote to state that he had invented a sure- 
death-to-rats trap, the best thing ever made, and if I would let him 
name it after me I would get a royalty on the sales. He was wise in 
writing. 

' ' One day a farmer friend of Ed Barton 's visited the state capital 
and was shown through all the buildings of interest. Barton took him 
to the state house, the governor's mansion, the penitentiary and every 



40 HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 

place lie could think of and finally brought him back to the hotel. The 
farmer looked unsatisfied. 

"What's the matter with you?" asked Barton; "haven't you seen 
everything you could see?" 

"No, I ain't!" said the farmer; 'the biggest thing you got here 
you have not showed me yet.' 

" 'What is it?' 

" 'That feller Davis what put through the rat bill; where 's 
he at?' " 



CHAPTER VI 

First Linn County Fair — List of Officers — Articles of Association — A 
Remarkable Meteor — The Killing of Willie McKinley — Efforts to 
Get Slayer Pardoned — Governor Crittenden's Reply to Petition — 
A Vigorous Condemnation of Drinking and Pistol Carrying — 
Organization of Linn County — John Riley, Ransom Price and Levi 
Blankenship Named as Commissioners to Select County Seat — The 
Act Designating Boundary Line — Metes and Bounds — The 
Original County Court — Deed to County Seat. 

The First Linn County Fair 

While this enterprise did not continue long, it taught the people 
the importance of such an annual event, and now the Brookfield Fair is 
one of the most thriving institutions of the county. 

In its efforts to establish and make permanent the first fair the 
county court appropriated $150 annually to be used as premiums. The 
officers were as follows : 

Joseph Schrock, president; C. J. Hale, vice-president; L. H. Hig- 
gins, treasurer; J. V. Martin, secretary. 

Directors — Joseph Schrock, W. H. Benefiel, C. J. Hale, E. Ches- 
round, M. Cave, J. H. Tharp, E. Spokefield, J. T. Rawlins, P. Pound. 

Marshal, W. F. Alexander ; assistant marshal, Joseph Combs. 

Following were the constitution and by-laws: 

"Article 1. The officers of this society shall consist of nine direc- 
tors, one of whom shall be elected president of the society, to be elected 
annually, and he together with the other directors shall constitute a 
board of managers for governing and conducting the affairs of the 
society. The board of directors shall elect a secretary and treasurer,, 
who shall hold their office during the pleasure of the board. 

''Art. 2. The annual meeting of the society shall be held here- 
after on the first Saturday in January of each year, for the election of 
officers and the transaction of general business. The election shall be 
by ballot. Term of office to expire when successor is duly qualified. 

"Art. 3. The treasurer, before entering upon the duties of his 
office, shall execute a bond which shall be satisfactory to the directors, 

41 



42 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

for the faithful discharge of his duties and the paying of all of the 
moneys by him received, in such sums as the directors may direct. 

''Art. 4. No person can be an officer who is not a member of the 
society, and a resident of Linn county. 

"Art. 5. Members of the society shall be residents of the state. 

"Art. 6. The annual exhibition of the society shall be held in the 
month of September or October. 

"Art. 7. All articles offered for premiums shall be produced 
from the farm of the exhibitor, and by the persons offering the same, 
or by members of their families. All products must be raised in this 
state. 

"Art. 8. The membership fee shall be $2 each, payable by the 
first of August to the treasurer of the society. 

"Art. 9. No eating houses or stands as such shall be permitted 
upon the grounds, except by permission of the Board. 

"Art. 10. No spirituous, malt, or vinuous liquors will be per- 
mitted to be sold or given away, or in any way disposed of on the 
grounds, or in the vicinity of the fair grounds during the fair. 

"Art. 11. All fast riding or driving is positively forbidden within 
the enclosure, and this rule shall be strictly enforced; and no huckster- 
ing or gambling of any kind shall be permitted within the enclosure. 

"Art. 12. No person shall have access to the secretary's books 
to ascertain who have made entries in any ring, nor shall the secretary 
give such information in any case. 

"Art. 13. Two auditors shall be chosen, one by the directors, and 
one by the society, to audit the society's accounts at each annual 
meeting. 

"Art. 14. Nine public notices shall be posted by the directors in 
the most public places, at least 10 days before each annual meeting. 

"Art. 15. This constitution may be altered or amended at any 
annual meeting by a two-thirds vote of the members present." 



A brilliant meteor passed over Linn county the night of December 
21, 1876. It burst forth from the southwest and was vividly clear to 
people all over the county for nearly half a minute. This beautiful 
heavenly visitor was said to have journeyed eastward, where it landed 
with a tremendous explosion near Bucyrus, Ohio. It recalled to the 
minds of many of the older inhabitants the shower of stars or meteors 
in November, 1833, and many thought it presaged the return of such a 
display. Quite a number of Linn county citizens and those of other 



HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 43 

sections as well, maintained an all night vigil after the meteor had 

^^''chronologically the next event that excited a great deal of dis- 
cussion throughout Linn county was a killing at Laclede. This occurred 
in July 1878. James Edwards, a young man with respectable connec- 
tions, became intoxicated and shot into a crowd of small boys. The 
bullet struck and killed William McKinley. As the verdict of the jury 
was the first one returned in Linn county in connection with a murder 

case it is here set out in full : . ^ n r^ 

-We the undersigned jurors, impanelled by A. Carroll, Coronei 
of Linn countv, Mo., to view the body of Willie McKinley now lying be, 
fore us, do find that said William McKinley came to his death by bemg 
shot in the breast by a ball fired from a pistol held in the ^^^ds of 
James Edwards on the 4th of July, 1878, between the hours of / and 8 
V m., in the public square in the town of Laclede, Mo. 
^' ''J. L. Reynolds, Foreman. 

"Virgil True. 

"W. B. Cather. 

"J. H. Wilson. 

''0. W. Elliott. 

''John Beinager. 
"Laclede, Missouri, July 5, 1878." 

It is said that Edwards, when be became sober was much horrified 
over the tragic results of his reckless action. He was given a trial, 
found guiltv of murder in the second degree and sentenced to ten years 
in the penitentiary. An effort was made in December 1881, to have 
him pardoned. The application was sent to Governor Thomas S. Crit- 
tenden. In stating his reasons for refusing to grant the pardon Gover- 
nor Crittenden carefully reviewed the testimony and also the plea made 
by friends in behalf of young Edwards. The opimon of Governor 
Crittenden on this application, which he felt bound to deny, is a notable 
document. After referring in detail to the testimony of the witnesses, 
and speaking in the kindliest manner of Judge Burgess who tried the 
case, the Governor said: n i? i • ..^ 

"The bov killed was about thirteen years old and small for his age, 
as said one of the witnesses. Enough of the evidence has been given to 
show how and bv whom the little boy was killed and the condition ot 
the man who did it. Before a defendant is convicted in court he is pre- 
sumed to be innocent, and it devolves on the state to remove that pre- 
sumption. After the conviction he is not only presumed to be, but is 



44 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

adjudged to be guilty, and before I will exercise clemency in any case 
the action and judgment of the court must be shown to be erroneous by 
invincible facts or by such mitigating circumstances as would have 
modified the judgment if known at that time. 

"What is there in this case in the light of this rule that requires 
me to interfere with the sentence of the court? Is it because he (Ed- 
wards) was drunk and discharged his revolver with great recklessness, 
to say the least of it, into a crowd of innocent boys who had gathered 
in the park for social amusements I If so when would society be safe 
from the actions of bad men, who would often put themselves in that 
evil condition to accomplish their premeditated deeds'? Drunkenness is 
not now, never has been, and I hope never will be, an excuse for crime 
in this state. . . . 

"This defendant was also guilty of another violation of the law 
before he killed Young McKinley; that was in carrying a concealed 
weapon. This is a great and growing crime in this state, against the 
law of Grod and of society, and should be punished without sympathy 
and without favor. 

"Drunkenness and revolvers cause more crime, more executions, 
more penalties, more sorrows to innocent mothers, fathers, brothers, 
sisters and wives, than all the other causes combined, and both should 
receive the strongest reprobation from the social, religious and moral 
community. 

"Society should have some way in protecting itself against such 
evils. It can only be done by education and legislation. Legislation 
will not do it if clemency is extended to the offenders without regard to 
the crime. They must know there is power and meaning in the law; 
that there is an iron will as well as justice in the courts ; that there is a 
determination in society to protect itself against the lawless ; that a 
sentence of the court means an execution; that 'the way of the trans- 
gressor is hard,' and will remain so until reformation comes. 

"I am asked to pardon Edwards on the ground of mercy and to 
gratify the hearts of his parents, who are old Christian people calmly 
awaiting the last summons. 

"It is not always judicious to exercise mercy at the expense of the 
many. Society must be remembered as well as the individual. I have 
a profound sympathy for the good old people, but that sympathy must 
not prevail against the obligation I owe to the preservation of good 
society in this state. If men will get drunk against common decency, 
if men will carry revolvers against the law and the rule of propriety, 
and will, under the evil inspiration of the one use the other, they must 



HISTOEY OF LINX COUNTY 45 

suffer for it on the gallows or in the penitentiary. My sympathy and 
mercy are for the industrious and lawabiding people of the state; not 
for the thieves, murderers and robbers inside of the prison walls. I will 
see that justice is done them ; beyond that I am not expected to go. I see 
no reason why I should pardon Edwards ; the application is therefore 
refused. 

^^ Thomas T. Crittenden." 
December 13, 1881. 

As originally organized Chariton county extended northward to 
the Iowa line, including what afterwards became Linn county. Chari- 
ton county was organized November 16, 1820. At tlie session of the 
general assembly of Missouri, in the winter of 1836-37, an act was 
passed creating the county of Linn from the territory attached to 
Chariton county, and extending Linn county's government to the Iowa 
line. That act was passed January 6, 1837. From that time Linn 
county has had a corporate existence. The same act establishing Linn 
county also created Livingston, Macon and Taney counties. 

The sections creating Linn county, and defining its bounds, read as 
follows : 

''Be it enacted by the general assembly of the state of Missouri 
as follows: 

' ' Section 18. All that portion of the territory heretofore attached 
to the county of Chariton, in the following boundaries : Beginning at 
the southeast corner of township 57, range 18, west; thence west with 
said township line to the range line dividing range 21 and 22; thence 
north with said range line to the township line dividing township 60 and 
61 ; thence east with said township line to the range line dividing 17 and 
18; thence south with said range line to the beginning; is hereby de- 
clared to be a separate and distinct county, to be called and known by 
the name of Linn county, in honor of the Honorable Lewis F. Linn; 
and all the rights and privileges guaranteed by law to separate, dis- 
tinct counties, are hereby extended to the county of Linn. 

' ' Sec. 19. John Eiley, Ransom Price and Levi Blankenship, of the 
county of Chariton are appointed commissioners to select the seat of 
justice for said county. The said commissioners are hereby vested with 
all the powers granted to commissioners by an act entitled, 'An Act to 
Provide for Organizing Counties Hereafter Established.' Approved 
December 9, 1836. 

"Sec. 20. The Court to be holden for said county shall be held in 



46 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

the house of Silas Fore until the county court shall fix upon a tem- 
porary seat of justice for said county. 

''See. 21. The Governor is hereby authorized and required to 
appoint and commission three persons, resident in said county, as jus- 
tice of the county court, and one person, resident of the said county as 
sheriff of said county. When so commissioned they shall have full 
power and authority to act as such in their respective offices, under the 
existing laws, until their successors are elected, commissioned and 
qualified. 

"Sec. 22. All that portion of the territory lying north of the 
county of Linn shall be attached to said county, for all civil and military 
purposes, until otherwise provided by law. 

"Sec. 23.* The circuit and county courts of 'said counties, or the 
judges thereof in vacation, shall have power to appoint their clerks, 
who shall hold their offices until the general election in 1838, and until 
their successors are elected and qualified. 

"Sec. 24. The commissioners to locate the respective county 
seats, aforesaid shall meet on the first Monday in May next, at the place 
of holding court for the counties respectively, in which said county seats 
are to be located, for the purpose of entering on the discharge of their 
duties. 

' ' Sec. 25. Four terms of the county court shall be held in each of 
the counties aforesaid, on the first Monday in February JMay, August 
and November, and the courts may alter the times of holding their 
stated terms, giving notice thereof in such manner as to them shall 
seem expedient. 

"This act to take effect and be in force from and after its passage. 

"Approved, January 6, 1837." 

Eight days later a supplemental Act was passed designating the 
boundary line between Linn and Livingston counties, as follows: 

"Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of Missouri, 
as follows: 

"Section 1. The county line dividing the counties of Livingston 
and Linn be so changed as to continue up Grand river from where the 
range line dividing ranges 21 and 22 cross said river, to the sectional 
line dividing range 22 in equal parts; thence north with said sectional 
line to the township line dividing townships 59 and 60 ; thence west with 
the original line of said county ; and the line of Linn county shall extend 
from the point last mentioned north with the aforesaid section line, to 

* The Sections 23, 24 and 25 apply to all the counties that were admitted under the 
same Act. 



HISTOEi' OF LINN COUNTY 4T 

the line dividing townships 60 and 61 ; thence east with said line to the 
original line of Linn county. 

'^This act to take effect and be in force from and after its passage. 

"Approved January 14, 1837." 

Metes and Bounds 

The act organizing the county of Linn gives its metes and bounds 
three miles less in width than is shown on the map, its western border 
being range line dividing ranges 21 and 22. When the error was dis- 
covered or when the additional territory was added can only be sup- 
posed from the metes and bounds of the county as given by the revised 
statutes of Missouri, 1879, paragraph 5189. It reads : 

Linn, beginning at the southeast corner of township 57, range 18 
west; thence west to the southwest corner of section 34, township 57, 
range 22 west ; thence north with the subdivisional line to the northwest 
corner of section 3 of township 60, range 22 west ; thence east with the 
township line between township 60 and 61 to the northeast corner of 
township 60, range 18 west ; thence south with the range line between 
ranges 17 and 18 to the place of the beginning." 

This would make Linn county 27 miles east and west and 24 miles, 
north and south. The present map of Linn county does not show this 
area of territory, its northern line being different from the metes and 
bounds given by the section above quoted. This arises from the fact 
that township 60 is a fractional township, being on the east side of the 
county a trifle over five miles north and south and on the west side four 
miles and a half instead of the six miles of the usual congressional 
township. The north line, then, of township 60 bears south from the 
range between 17 and 18 to range line between 19 and 21 and a half 
miles; from there due west to the county line it divides the section 
nearly or quite equally. The county's true limit is 23 miles and a frac- 
tion north and south on the east sides, 221/2 miles north and south on 
the west line of the county, and 27 miles in width. This fractional 
township is what has deceived the writers or history of Linn county. 
There are not 684 square miles of territory in the county, but without 
going into fractions 611 square miles, and that area covers 392,040 
acres of as fine land, in the richness and productiveness of its soil, as 
can be found in the valley of the Mississippi. This county, which was 
once a part of St. Charles, then of Howard, and later of Chariton coun- 
ties, the garden spot of Central north Missouri, is what is now to' be 
considered and all that is worthy of record will be given, making it a 
standard book of reference of Linn county for all future time. 



48 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

The Original County Court 

According to the Act of the organization, the first county court of 
Linn county was held on the first Monday in February, 1837. There 
was no date, however, on the record of the proceedings. 

The court met at the house of Silas A. Fore. But two of the 
judges were present. James A. Clark, who afterwards became judge 
of this judicial circuit and held the office for nearly twenty years, was 
appointed clerk pro tem of the court. That appointment was the first 
order on record. 

The next order was ''that the court adjourn to the house of E. T. 
Dennison for the purpose of doing business it being so inconvenient to 
do business at Fore's." 

James Howell and William Bowyer were the judges present. The 
sheriff's name was not recorded in the minutes. 

The court then divided the county into three municipal townships, 
to be known as Parson Creek, Locust Creek and Yellow Creek. 

It was ordered that elections be held in those townships on April 8, 
1837, for the purpose of electing one justice of the peace for Parson 
Creek and Yellow Creek townships, and two of the same sort of officers 
for Locust Creek. The voting was to be done at the homes of certain 
citizens in the various townships. 

The court ordered the sheriff to notify the judges of the elections, 
and to put up notices. The clerk of the court was also directed to 
procure a blank book for the use of the court before the next term. 

At the election referred to above the following parties were chosen 
as justices: 

Thomas Eappell, formerly of Virginia, and David Mullins, Locust 
Creek township ; Irvin Ogan, for Parson Creek and Mordecai Lane for 
Yellow Creek township. 

The next term of the county court was held May 1, 1837. At that 
time all three judges were present, the third one being Robert Warren. 

The migratory court made another change of its headquarters, this 
time to Barbee 's store, which was used until a permanent location could 
be had. James Howell was appointed presiding judge. John J. Flood 
was appointed assessor and filed his bond. E. T. Dennison, at whose 
home the court had met during its first session, was appointed clerk, a 
position which he was to hold until the next general election. At the 
June term Thomas Barbee was appointed treasurer. Another election 
was ordered for the first Monday in August to select an additional 
magistrate for both Parson Creek and Yellow Creek townships. 



HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 49 

Judge Clark received $5.21i4 for Ms services as clerk. John J. 
Flood was paid $28.75 for assessing the taxes of the county. The 
sheriff was asked by duly entered order to refund to the county $1.50 
on an overcharge in his account. 

The first tax assessment was 200 per cent on the state tax and a 
poll tax. 

The first agent to receive the county's share of the road and canal 
fund was Thomas Barbee, the treasurer. 

Stephen McCollum, of the Yellow Creek township, was elected 
justice of the peace. 

The first road laid out for travel in Linn county was in November, 

1837. It started from a mile west of George Epperly's to the old fish 
dam on Locust creek. Much work was done on the road in the way of 
cutting through hills and the building of culverts. The first road over- 
seers were James A. Clark, Mordecai Lane, Sampson Wyatt and 
Thomas Rupel. The fact that a man was justice of the peace in no way 
interferred with his duty as a road overseer. 

During the November term the important question of locating the 
county seat came up for discussion. The commissioners appointed for 
the state had failed to perform that duty, the people became tired of the 
delay and insisted that the county court should act. 

The county court appointed David Duncanson, of Livingston 
county, James Jackson, of Howard county, and Hiram Craig, of Chari- 
ton county, to make the location. The sheriff was ordered to put up 
ten notices stating that the commissioners would meet on January 1, 

1838, at the usual place of holding court in Linn county. It is not 
recorded whether the commissioners did meet at that time or not, but 
it is certain they did not make the location for more than a year 
thereafter. 

David Duncanson and William B. Thompson selected the present 
site of Linneus to be the permanent county seat on October 29, 1839. 
For their services these commissioners received each $32. Their report 
was approved by the judge of the Circuit Court at the August term. 
The Honorable Thomas C. Burch was then on the bench. 

John Holland and wife conveyed to Linn county the townsite of 
Linneus, August 25. This donation decided the commissioners on the 
location. The deed by which Holland and his wife conveyed the prop- 
erty to Linn county is as follows : 

''Know all men by these presents, that we, John Holland and 
Elizabeth Holland, his wife, have donated and given to the county of 
Linn, in the state of Missouri, for the benefit and use of said county, as 



50 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

a permanent seat of justice, fifty acres of land, bounded and situated 
as follows : Beginning at the post at the northwest corner of section 6, 
township 58, range 20; thence east along the north boundary of said 
section, fifty-four poles to a stake in the prairie ; thence south one hun- 
dred and forty-eight poles and five links to a stake in the prairie; 
thence west fifty-four poles to a stake on the range line, to which a red 
oak two feet in diameter bears north seventy degrees, thirty minutes 
east, eighty-two links, (and) a hickory ten inches in diameter bears 
south thirty-four degrees, thirty minutes west, sixty-three links ; thence 
north along the range line to the place of beginning ;— to have and to 
hold the aforesaid tract of land, with all and singular the rights, privi- 
leges and immunities thereunto in any wise belonging to the said 
county of Linn forever ; and we further bind ourselves, our heirs, execu- 
tors, administrators, and assigns to warrant and forever defend the 
title to the said tract of land to the said county of Linn against the 
claim or claims of all and every person or persons whosoever. In testi- 
mony whereof we have hereunto set our hands and seals, this 25th day 
of August, in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and 

thirty-nine. 

"John Holland. (L. S.) 
"Elizabeth Holland. (L. S.)" 



CHAPTER VII 

How Linneus Was Named — First Sale of Toivn Lots — Original Court 
House — A Smoky Cabin and a Scrap — ''Where's the Fight?" — 
Jesse Bowyer's Ferry — Sale of Slave Property — Highland County 
— Division of Townships — Appropriation for New Court House — 
Built Inside Amount Appropriated — First Talk of Railroads — Jail 
Building to Be "Proof Against Breaking Out" — Col. Robert M. 
Stewart — Sketch of His Career — His Work for the Hannibal and 
St. Joseph Railroad — A Hot Campaign for Governor. 

Augustus W. Flournoy, deputy county clerk, was allowed $1,021/2 
for recording the above deed. 

When the county seat was first laid off it was called Linnville. 
On November 5, 1839, the county court formally adopted that name, 
and on 30th an order was made by the same body "that Linnville be 
the permanent seat of justice of the county of Linn." 

The name was changed to Linneus by order of the county court 
on February 4, 1840. This was done at the suggestion of Senator 
Lewis F. Linn, for whom the county had been named. 

Judge James A. Clark wrote to Senator Linn that the county and 
its capital had been named in his honor and asked for his endorsement 
of that action. Senator Linn replied that while he did not wish to 
dictate in a matter of that character, yet he rather preferred the name 
of Linneus to Linnville. Judge Clark laid the senator's letter before 
the county court, which body instantly made the change suggested. A 
great many people suppose that Linneus was named after the great 
Swedish scientist, Karl Von Linne, who was commonly called Linnaeus. 
The Swedish savant was the greatest botanist of his age. He was born 
in Rashult, Sweden, May 13, 1807; was the son of a clergyman, who 
had him educated at the grammar school in the Grymnasium of Wexio. 
As a result of his extensive investigation along botanical lines, Linnaeus 
was made a Knight of the Polar Star, with the rank of nobility. In 
his day his successful researches had made him a recognized authority 
along the lines of his study and he was looked up to as a world 
benefactor. 

51 



53 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

But the people who named Linneus and Linn county were desirous 
of honoring a man nearer home in the person of the state's noted 
senator, whose biographical sketch appears in the first part of this 
history. 

Some question was raised regarding the legality of the procedure 
in the location of the county seat. Other commissioners than those 
appointed had acted and the time set for the location had been changed. 
Also to make the matter absolutely certain the state legislature in 
December, 1840, passed an act to legalize the location of the seat of 
justice of Linn county. 

"5e it enacted, etc., 1. That all the proceedings and acts which 
may be had or transacted by the commissioners of the seat of justice of 
the county of Linn, or by the county court of said county, in selecting, 
locating, or establishing the seat of justice of said county, in naming or 
altering and changing the name of the same, be and the same are hereby 
legalized and rendered as effectual as if the same had been done in all 
respects in conformity to law. 

"2. That all acts and proceedings wherein either 'Linneville' or 
'Linnaeus' is used or occurs as the name of the seat of justice of said 
county shall be as binding and effectual as if the name so used or occur- 
ring had at all times been the regular name of the seat of justice of said 
county. ' ' 

On November 5, 1839, John D. Grant, the first county commissioner, 
was ordered to advertise by three weekly insertions in the Fayette 
Democrat, of Howard county, the sale of "one-third of the town lots 
of Linnville, Linn county, Missouri, on a credit of six, twelve and twenty- 
four months, of equal installments." The sale was to take place 
December 2. The commissioner was instructed *'to lay out one acre of 
ground in the public square, to be laid out in a square, to commence at 
a stake and run an equal distance from said stake, the Public Square 
to be on the west of said line ; one main street on each side of the Public 
Square running north and south, 51 feet and 6 inches wide; to back 
streets 30 feet wide each. Two main cross streets 49-feet, 6 inches wide, 
each adjoining the Public Square; one back cross street on each side 
of the Public Square, 30 feet wide ; and that he lay out 16 lots to each 
block around the Public Square, running back 80 feet, and the 
balance of the lots to be laid out agreeable to a plat rendered to said 
commissioner. ' ' 

Commissioner Grant was aided in this duty by R. W. Foster, a 
surveyor. The work was done in the latter part of November, 1839. 
For his services in laying off the town Grant charged the county $200, 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 53 

but the bill was cut down by the county court to $77. Soon after the 
first lot sale Mr. Grant died and R. W. Foster, his assistant, was 
appointed in his place on December 28. Later the governor appointed 
Foster as county surveyor, which position he held until February, 
1842. 

Meredith Brown was the purchaser of lot 1, block 1, which was 
the first lot sold. The price paid for the lot is not known, but it is 
supposed to have been at least $5, because the county court in adver- 
tising the sale served notice that no lot should be sold for less than that 
sum. The lot sale continued two days, December 2 and 3. Still there 
were other lots remaining to be sold and another sale was advertised 
for May 6, 1840, on which day one-half of the remaining lots were sold 
to bidders. 

Affairs in Linn county had reached that point where it was deemed 
necessary to have a court house building in which to transact the busi- 
ness of the county. These are the specifications by the order of the 
county court, at the February term, 1841, for the first court house that 
was built in Linn county : 

"The house to be built on the southeast corner of Lot 3, Block 19, 
of hewed logs, 36 feet long and 20 feet wide, (the house to be 20 feet 
wide, not the logs, of course,) from out to out ; the wall to be fifteen feet 
high from the bottom of the sill to the top of the plate, with a wall 
partition to be carried up from the bottom to the top of the plate so 
as to make the front room twenty-three feet long in the clear; the logs 
all to be of sound oak; the sills to be of white oak or burr oak; the 
sleepers to be of good white oak or burr oak of sufficient streng-th, two 
feet from center to center ; the joice to be of good sound oak, three feet 
by ten inches, put in two feet from center to center, to extend through 
the wall; . . . The house to be covered with good oak shingles; 
. the end of the house is to front the Public Square, with one 
door in the center of the end of the house; one fifteen-light window on 
each side of said door, 8 by 10 inches; one door in the center of the 
partition wall ; one door and one window in the end of the back room so 
as to leave room in the center for a chimney ; The window to be 12-light 
of eight by ten inch glass, the doors and windows to be finished in 
plain batten order, with good black- walnut plank; . . . The whole 
building to be chinked with stone suitably tamped ; the lower floor to be 
laid down roughly, with square pints; the upper floor rough-tongued 
and squared, the plank to be of good sound oak timber well dressed, 
with an opening left in the southwest corner for a staircase ; the whole 



54 HISTOIiY OF LINN COUNTY 

to be done in a workmanlike manner on or before tlie first day of 
Angnst, 1841." 

The building of the temporary court house was let to David Jenkins 
and Goldsby Quinn, $400 having been appropriated for the purpose 
February 5, 1841, and was superintended on the part of the county by 
William Hines. It was not completed by the time specified. In Novem- 
ber Mr. Hines was ordered to have a brick chimney erected in the 
building, to contain two four-feet fireplaces below and two two-feet 
fireplaces in the upper story. The building finally cost, when completed, 
$516.50, and long stood in Linneus and is well remembered by the older 
settlers. 

Before the court house was erected the various officers kept the 
books and records of the county at their respective homes. Sometimes 
— very frequently — a man having business to transact with the county 
officers would have to seek him out in the field or the forest and get him 
to walk back to the house to look up the records wanted for the matter 
in hand. 

Court was held at the residences of Barbee, Fore and Holland, 
whichever place happened to be the most expedient. Judge Clark held 
the first court at Mr. Holland's. Holland's cabin was the first erected 
in the place and it boasted of an enormous fireplace, but a somewhat 
inadequate chimney. On one occasion when the court was proceeding 
at its business the old chimney became stopped up and the room was 
filled with smoke. Holland did not know how to repair the defect right 
then and court had to adjourn until something was done. There was 
quite a crowd of people in town that day and as the judge was leaving 
the smoky cabin the sheriif ran up and told him that a fist fight was in 
progress between a couple of farmers, and he wanted to know what his 
duty was under such circumstances. 

''Duty!" cried the judge. "It is your duty to show me where the 
fight is ! I want to see it, too. ' ' 



The first ferry license was a free grant to William and Jesse 
Bowyer, and they were allowed to charge I214 cents for ferrying a man 
and horse across the stream; 50 cents for a loaded wagon and team, and 
61/4 cents for pedestrians. The license was granted at the December 
term, 1837, the year the county was organized. 

At the May term of the county court, 1838, Benton township was 
formed, being taken from the central part of Locust Creek township. 
John Pierce and William Gibson were elected justices of the peace. 



HISTOEY OF LIXX COUNTY 55 

Augustus W. Flournoy was appointed county treasurer on May 7, 
1838, to fill the vacancy occasioned by the resignation of Thomas Barbee. 
The first meeting of the newly elected county judges in 1838 occurred 
at the house of John Holland, the man who deeded the site for the 
county seat. 

Duncan was the next township organized, the order being made 
June 24, 1839. The voting precinct was designated at the house of 
John Holland. Eobert AV. Holland was elected justice of the peace for 
Duncan township. Samuel K. Smith was the first constable of that 
township. The first school lands sold by order of the county court 
occurred the fourth Monday in December, 1839. The sixteenth sections 
of Township 58, Eange 18 west, and Township 58, Range 20 west, were 
sold in eighty-acre tracts. Those sections were in what is now Locust 
Creek and the north part of Bucklin township. 

This sale laid the foundation of Linn county's school fund, which 
has been so satisfactorily kept through all the following years, and it 
might here be remarked that the education feature of Linn county has 
kept pace with its industrial development. 

The first census of Linn county was taken by John W. Minnis, in 

1840. For this service the county court allowed him $54.75. 
Liberty township was organized north of Duncan township, in 

1841. This township's southern line was the township line between 
62 and 63, which is now Sullivan county. The first bridge built in the 
county was across Locust creek, near William Bowyer's, on the state 
road running from Palmyra, Marion county, to Plattsburg, Buchanan 
county. About the same time two other bridges were ordered to be 
built across the east and west forks of Yellow creek. Thomas H. 
Pearson was directed to superintend the construction of the two last 
bridges. William Bowyer was ordered to superintend the building of 
the bridge near his place, 

R. W. Foster, county surveyor, reported $707.10 on hand November 
8, 1841. At this time money was needed to complete the court house 
and for other necessary county work. To meet this demand for addi- 
tional money the court issued an order that "the treasurer of Linn 
county be authorized to borrow $200, at any per cent per annum, not 
to exceed 10 per cent, for a term of not less than 6 months nor more 
than 12 months, to be paid, (if borrowed) out of the town lot fund in 
the town of Linneus." 

A second loan was ordered in February, 1842, the amount being 
$100. 

The county court was very industrious during the year 1841 — 



06 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

laying our new roads, appointing reviewers, overseers and commis- 
sioners. The county was developing and it was appreciated then, as it 
is now, that country roads were highly responsible for the prosperity 
of the county. Bridge work was prosecuted as fast as the revenue per- 
mitted. A bridge then didn't cost as much as it does now. The 
material was close at hand and labor was cheap. Stephen McCollum 
was allowed $325 for building a bridge across Yellow creek and $10 for 
some extras. John E. Baker received $292 for constructing a bridge 
across East Fork. 

The temporary court house, as it was called, was completed in 
February, 1842. Superintendent Hines was directed to place the key 
of the establishment formally into the hands of Jeremiah Phillips, the 
sheriff, who by order of the court was placed in charge of the building. 
The original plans for this court house had been considerably altered. 
There were four windows, several brick chimneys and the structure was 
weatherboarded. In the court room were eight wooden benches, fur- 
nished by Goldsby Quinn, who was paid $66.54 for them. 

Pleasant Hill township was organized May 3, 1842. This township 
was also located in what is now Sullivan county. The voting place was 
at Mathew Kidd's house. Linneus Davis was appointed road district- 
ing justice for the township. 



The first and only slave property mentioned in the records of Linn 
county up to the year 1845 was found in settling the estate of Capt. 
Daniel Flournoy. In December, 1842, the court made this order : 

''It is ordered by the court that Robert C. Combs, William Burt 
and James Carson be appointed commissioners to divide the estate of 
the late Capt. Daniel Flournoy, consisting of four slaves, named as 
follows: Frank, Phil, Anna, and Edith, as coming to a part of said 
legatees, to wit: Virginia Ann Williams, formerly Virginia Ann 
Flournoy. And it is further ordered that the clerk deliver a copy of 
this order to John G. Flournoy, agent for the guardian of the said 
Virginia Ann Williams." 

The territory north of Linn county to the Iowa line was attached 
to Linn county for all civil and military purposes, and had no par- 
ticular name until 1843. At the session of the general assembly, in 
the winter of 1842-43, an act was passed defining the territorial limits 
of a county of the territory above mentioned, which included the present 
county of Sullivan. This was Highland county, but it was not organ- 
ized into its municipal government until two years later. 



HISTORY OF LIN^N COUNTY 57 

The act provided that "the revenue levied and collected by the 
county of Linn, for county purposes, within the aforesaid county of 
Linn, after deducting the expenses of assessing and collecting the same 
and all the expenses which may arise from criminal prosecutions origi- 
nating in the county of Highland, shall be reserved for the use of 
Highland county and shall be paid over to said county by the county 
court of Linn county whenever the said county of Highland may be 
organized." The act was approved February 17, 1847. 

The following order of the county court shows the care that was 
exercised in looking after minor children: 

"It is ordered by the court that Frederick Hester be appointed 
guardian for Daniel Franklin Clary, minor and heir of Henderson 
Clary, and that the said guardian bind the said minor to Levi Moore 
upon the following conditions, towit : The said Moore is to school the 
said minor to read and write, and in arithmetic to understand the 
'Rule of 3,' to clothe said minor with sufficient clothing, lodging and 
diet until he shall become 21 years of age. At which time the said 
Moore is to furnish said minor two suits of common clothing and one 
suit of fine clothes which is to be worth $20, and one horse, saddle and 
bridle to be worth $60." 

The remainder of the Linneus town lots were ordered to be sold 
by the then county commissioner, Charles A. Fore, who had charge 
of the county seat property. A commissioner had been appointed to 
appraise all the unsold lots, and the order stated that the price to be 
paid must measure up to the appraisement, otherwise they were not 
to be sold. The commissioner was authorized to make the sale of the 
lots. The terms of the sale were two equal installments at twelve and 
twenty-four months from date of purchase, 10 per cent interest, with 
security. The deeds were to be given when first installment and inter- 
est were paid in full. The report of the sale was filed February 7, 
1845. 



The first contested election case in Linn county was between 
"William J. Cornett and John Spencer. Both were candidates for jus- 
tice of the peace in February, 1844. The court decided in favor of 
Cornett. 

On May 6, 1845, the county court made the following order 
appointing commissioners to lay off Linn county into seven municipal 
townships : 

"It is ordered by the Court that Linn county be divided into 



58 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

seven municipal townships, and that Hiram E. Hurlbut, James W. 
McCormaek, Thompson K. Neal, Stephen McCollum and Samuel Baker 
be appointed commissioners to lay off said county into seven municipal 
townships, and that the said commissioners shall meet at the Court 
House in Linneus the second Monday of July next in order to make 
said townships, and that said commissioners designate the township's 
boundaries by water courses, range lines, township lines and sectional 
lines, referred to in Acts of the 26th of January, 1845, and that they 
make report to this Court at the next regular term thereof, and that 
the sheriff notify them of their appointment." 

On November 5, 1845, the commissioners brought in their report 
fixing the boundaries of the respective townships as follows : 

"Yellow Creek Township — Commencing at the southeast corner 
of township 57, of range 18 west, thence west with said line to the 
section line dividing 34 and 35, township 57, of range 19 ; thence north 
with said line to the line dividing sections 15 and 22, in township 58, 
of range 19 ; thence west with said line to the line dividing sections 21 
and 20, township 58, of range 19; thence north to the township line 
dividing townships 58 and 59; thence east on said line to the county 
line between Linn and Macon counties ; thence south along said line to 
the beginning. 

"Baker Township — Commencing at the southeast corner of town- 
ship 59, of range 18 ; thence west to the section line dividing 32 and 33, 
in township 59, in range 19; thence north to the County line between 
Linn and Sullivan counties; thence east to the county line between 
Linn and Macon counties ; thence south along said line to the beginning. 

"Benton Township — Commencing at the southeast corner of sec- 
tion 8, in township 59, of range 19; thence west along said line to the 
middle of the channel of the main Locust Creek ; thence up said creek 
to the mouth of the west fork of said creek, thence up the said west 
fork in the middle of said channel thereof north to the county line 
between Linn and Sullivan counties ; thence east along said line to the 
section line dividing sections 8 and 9, township 60, range 19; thence 
south along said line to the beginning. 

"Jackson Township — Commencing in the middle of the channel 
of main Locust Creek where the township line divides townships 58 
and 59, of range 21; thence west along said line to the county line 
between Linn and Livingston counties ; thence north to the county line 
dividing Linn and Sullivan counties ; thence east along said line to the 
middle of the channel of the west fork of Locust Creek; thence down 
the same to the main Locust Creek to the beginning. 



HISTORY OF LINX COUNTY 59 

^ ' Parson Creek TownsMp — Commencing in the middle of the chan- 
nel of main Locust Creek on the county line between Linn and Chariton 
counties; thence west to the southwest corner of Linn county; thence 
north along the county line between Linn and Livingston counties to 
the township line dividing townships 58 and 59 ; thence east along said 
line to the middle of the channel of main Locust Creek; thence down 
the same to the place of beginning. 

''Jefferson Township — Commencing at the southeast corner of 
section 34, of township 57, of range 19; thence west along the county 
line to the middle of the channel of the main Locust Creek; thence up 
the middle of the channel of said creek to the section line dividing 
sections 14 and 23, in township 58, of range 21; thence east along said 
line to the section line between sections 22 and 23, in township 58, of 
range 19 ; thence south along said line to the place of beginning. 

"Locust Creek Township — Commencing at the southeast comer 
of section 17, in township 58, of range 19 ; thence west along said line 
to the middle of the channel of the main Locust Creek; thence up the 
same in the middle of the channel to the section line dividing sections 
11 and 14, in township 59, of range 21; thence east along said line to 
the northeast corner of section 17, of township 59, of range 19; thence 
south to the place of beginning." 

These townships were all in Linn county proper. Sullivan county 
was organized February 15, 1845, out of the territory of Linn county. 
Previous to that Sullivan county had been known as Highland county. 
The report of the commissioners was approved. 

After 1846 dawned the growth of Linn county and its increased 
official business demanded a more adequate court house. The pressure 
upon the county court became so strong that on March 4 Thomas 
Barbee was appointed to prepare and submit to the court a plan for 
the building of a court house in Linneus, fixing the dimensions, naming 
the materials and estimating the cost of such a structure. 

An appropriation of $4,000 was made for the new building July 1. 
It was specified that the court house should be built in the center of 
the public square at Linneus. William Sanders, Hiram E. Hurlbut, 
and Daniel Grace were appointed to superintend the construction. 
After the August election a new county court took charge and at its 
session in September an order was made relieving Hiram E. Hurlbut 
and Daniel Grace from acting as commissioners. 

William Sanders was appointed bridge commissioner to super- 
intend the construction of a bridge across Long Branch, on the state 
road to Macon county, and one across Big Muddy creek, on the state 



60 HISTORY OF LINX COUNTY 

road to Brunswick. Mr. Sanders, who still acted as court house com- 
missioner, reported plans and specifications for a new court house. 
They were approved and placed on file. The county court made an 
order on March 14, 1847, giving the necessary directions to Sanders, 
who was appointed superintendent, for the building of the court house 
and providing for its payment. 

The county court ordered a final sale of the town lots of Linneus 
on the first Monday in May, 1847, with instructions to continue from 
day to day until all the lots were sold. In May, $1,504.45 was realized 
from the sale and in August $98.25 additional. 

Enoch Kemper, county clerk, filed his reports of the county's 
receipts and expenditures for the year 1846, as follows: Receipts, 
$1,189.38; expenditures, $1,075.17; balance on hand, $114.20.* The tax 
levy of May 31, 1847, was one-half of 1 per cent additional for county 
purposes, while the state tax was about double what it had been the 
year previous. The increase of the county tax was necessitated by the 
building of the court house. This tax levy gave the county a revenue 
of $1,464.71, and yielded to the court house fund $742.86. It was sup- 
posed that this with the receipts from the Linneus town lot sales would 
be enough to meet the demands for building the new court house. 

James L. Nelson, who built the court house at Gallatin, Davis 
county, was the contractor for the Linn county court house. 

Lot 1, block 24, Linneus, was reserved for the county jail building. 

William Sanders resigned as superintendent of the construction 
and Augustus W. Flournoy was appointed to supervise the completion 
of the court house. 

Carlos Boardman, the first public administrator of Linn county, 
was appointed February, 1848. 

Having disposed of all the lots in Linneus as shown on the original 
plat, and the court house project still requiring more funds, the com- 
missioner for the county seat, Charles A. Fore, was ordered to lay off 
the residue of the town tract, to make a plat and have it attached to 
the original plat. This was done February 12, 1848. 

The foundation of the court house building having been laid, and 
the brick work well under way, a committee was appointed to examine 
the material and workmanship. Owen Rawlings, Samuel S. Swope 
and G. Walker were chosen on this committee. The committee made 
its report, which was received and approved by the county court. 

On this an order was issued to the treasurer to pay John L. Nelson, 
the contractor, $1,130 to apply in his work. This was in March. 

On May 2 the superintendent reported to the county court that 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 61 

two-thirds of the work on the court house had been credited, that the 
material was good and the work well done. On June 5 the contractor 
was given an additional warrant for $1,330. 

Commissioner Fore having completed the platting of the addition 
to the original town of Linneus, was ordered to sell the six lots 
embraced therein for $45,971/^. 

On October 16 Superintendent Flournoy reported to the county 
court that the new court house had been completed according to con- 
tract, and recommended that the same be received. The court accepted 
the report and ordered another warrant for $1,330 to Contractor Nelson 
as balance due. The total cost of the building was $3,894.85, including 
some slight alterations made in the contract. 

That was in the year 1848. Today counties of Missouri with no 
greater population than Linn county has are building court houses 
that cost all the way from $50,000 to $100,000. 

A notable thing about this pioneer court house building was that 
it was built inside of the contract price. It seems from all the data 
obtainable that the commissioners and others appointed to look after 
the building exercised the utmost vigilance to see that not a cent of 
money was wasted and that the material was fairly up to specifications. 

A statement of the county's financial condition for the year 1848 
showed a balance on hand of $592.61. 

At the August term, 1849, the county court made an order that 
no greater sum than $100 should be loaned to any one person out of 
the road and canal fund. Two hundred and $300 loans had been made, 
and if this was continued it was found that there wouldn't be enough 
money to go around. 

The county was now getting close to the railroad era — that is, to 
the talk that preceded the actual constructions. On October 10, 1849, 
the court made this order : 

''It is ordered by the Court that there be $200 appropriated out 
of the internal improvement fund of this county for the purpose of 
surveying the track for the Hannibal & St. Joseph Eailroad, subject 
to the order of the president of the Board of Commissioners of said 
road." 

This order marked an epoch in the development of Linn county. 
It was the initial step in the inauguration of the movement which has 
done much for the prosperity and development of the county. In that 
distant day it was not dreamed, possibly, what railroads would event- 
ually mean to this county. The ambition was to secure a line across 
the county which would furnish an easy method of reaching the two 



69 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

great rivers bordering the state, where the produce of the county 
would then be transferred to steamboats and carried to the great market 
centers. Today Linn county has three great lines of railroad travers- 
ing her bosom and two important division points, Brookfield and 
Marceline. Laclede is a junction and an important railroad center, 
also Bucklin. Doubtless the county court of 1849 thought $200 was a 
liberal appropriation for railroad enterprises, because in those days 
the layman had but small comprehension of the great costs of railroad 
facilities. 

That $200 appropriation got the people to talking railroad. It 
crystallized public sentiment in favor of better means of communica- 
tion. It made the iron horse a reality. Yet it was ten years in the 
future before the connections were made and the trains running. 

The first primary election that ever occurred in Linn county was 
ordered to be held the fourth Saturday in January, 1850. It has been 
stated that this was in reality the first primary election in Missouri. 
Thomas K. Neal had resigned as assessor and it became necessary to 
fill the office. There were plenty of candidates. The election was 
carried out strictly by the order of the county court, which read as 
follows : 

"It is ordered by the Court that the legal voters in and for Linn 
county may meet on the fourth Saturday of January next, 1850, at 
the several election precincts in said county for the purpose of electing 
an assessor to assess Linn county for 1850, and that the Court will 
appoint the person receiving the highest number of votes." 

William Clarkson received a majority of the votes and was duly 
appointed on February 4. 

Linn county's first jail was built under an order made March, 1851. 
The sum of $1,100 was appropriated for that purpose. It was specified 
in the order that the jail was to be "double wall of brick and logs, 
fitted with iron, located on Lot 6, Block 22." Hiram E. Hurlbut was 
appointed to supervise the construction and he was enjoined by the 
order to see that the jail was made proof against the most accomplished 
unfortunate to regain his liberty on being confined therein, without 
some help." 

Edward Hoyle was appointed county treasurer to succeed David 
Prewitt. Hoyle took possession of the office October 6, 1851. 

Another $500 was appropriated for the location of the Hannibal 
& St. Joseph Railroad through Linn county, April 14, 1851. An elec- 
tion was also ordered for the third Saturday in May so that the people 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 63 

might say how much stock the county should subscribe for to encourage 
the road. 

In September, Colonel Robert M. Stewart, promoter of the railroad 
company, appeared before the county court and requested that body to 
take stock in the railroad. This is the order of the county court on that 
proposition : 

' ' On motion of Colonel Robert M. Stewart, agent for the Hannibal 
& St. Joseph Railroad Company, it is ordered by the court here that 
the county of Linn take 250 shares in the stock of the Hannibal and St. 
Joseph Railroad, at the sum of $100 per share. ($25,000.) And that 
the court reserve to themselves the power to pay over the installments 
as they may be called for by said company on said stock, either by pay- 
ment in cash, or by issuing her bonds as it may be required ; and also, 
if the bonds which may hereafter be issued by the county for the pur- 
poses aforesaid shall be disposed of by said company at a discount, the 
said county is to bear no loss on account thereof. Said bonds to bear 
interest at the rate of 6 per cent per annum, payable annually. ' ' 

Colonel Stewart, referred to in the court's order, was one of the 
famous men of his day. The successful construction of the Hannibal & 
St. Joseph Railroad is probably due more to his indefatigable energy 
than to that of any other man. 

Because of his eternal optimism for the road, there are many who 
think that "Mark Twain" took his character of ''Colonel Sellers" from 
*'Bob" Stewart. It is stated, but without any particular authority, 
that a railroad enthusiast of the 50 's started an ox team at Hannibal 
and plowed a furrow clear across the state, and that Stewart, who 
assisted in the survey of the Hannibal and St. Joseph road, followed 
this primitive survey almost exactly. For fifty years following the 
road's construction the inhabitants of northern Missouri have spoken 
of this ox team survey and its wonderful practicability. Truth is, it was 
originally intended to run the road through Shelbyville, Bloomington 
and Linneus, and Bloomington made a large donation on the strength 
of an agreement to strike that town. Afterward the line was moved 
southward and Bloomington 's money was refunded. 

Robert Morris Stewart, to whose untiring energy and faith the 
building of the Hannibal and St. Joseph road is ascribed, was born at 
Truxton, Cortlandt county. New York, March 12, 1815, and died at 
St. Joseph, Mo., September 21, 1871, a poor man. He was never mar- 
ried. His remains rested in an unmarked grave in Mount Mora ceme- 
tery, until 1908, when the state had erected a handsome and imposing 
monument to his memory. 



64 HTSTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 

In his early life Stewart taught school and studied law in his 
native state. He came to Missouri in 1839 and located in St. Joseph. 
Stewart served as prosecuting attorney of Buchanan county and two 
terms in the legislature, once in each branch. In 1848 he was appointed 
registrar of the Land Office at Savannah, which position he resigned 
in order to engage in the preliminary survey of the Hannibal and St. 
Joseph Railroad. He superintended the entire work, in spite of the 
fact that a part of the time he was compelled to go about on crutches as 
result of an injury. His earnest and indomitable energy overcame all 
the embarrassing obstacles confronting the enterprise. Shortly after 
the completion of the survey Stewart went to the national capital and 
secured the land grant referred to in the report of the Chillicothe con- 
vention. [See railroad chapter.] 

Stewart served as president of the road after its completion, and 
labored incessantly to make it a popular means of travel. It is related 
that a baby was disturbing the sleep of the passengers one night. The 
weary mother was unable to quite the little one. Finally, President 
Stewart, who was on the coach, took in the situation. He walked over 
to the mother and remarked: "Madam, my name is Stewart." I am 
president of this road and its my duty to look after the comfort of the 
patrons. Hand that baby to me." 

Not knowing whether he was going to throw the child out of the 
window or otherwise murder it, yet fearing to disobey the *' president 
of the road," the frightened mother handed her infant over. Stewart, 
who never had a child of his own, clumsily took the little passenger in 
his arms and walked as steadily as he could up and down the swaying 
aisle. The compound motion seemed to be just what the youngster 
wanted and it fell asleep in the president's arms. Then it was handed 
back to the mother, with the admonition to send for the president if it 
kicked up any more fuss. 

Stewart aided in the construction of the St. Joseph and Denver 
Eailroad and projected the St. Louis & St. Joseph road. He was the 
author of the "Omnibus Bill," under which the railroad system of 
the state was built up. To every enterprise or measure calculated to 
help the state he was an earnest friend and worker. 

In politics Stewart was always actively interested. This campaign 
is characteristic of the man: Trusten Polk (Democrat), of St. Louis, 
was elected governor at the election in 1856. Soon after his inaugura- 
tion Polk was elected United States Senator to succeed Henry S. Geyer, 
deceased. He accepted the senatorship and resigned as governor. A 
special election was held in August to fill the gubernatorial vacancy. 



HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 65 

Stewart became the anti-Benton Democratic candidate. James S. Kol- 
lins, known as the "Father of the State University," was the Whig 
nominee. 

An exciting contest followed the lining-up of the rival candidates. 
Rollins was well-known as a campaign orator of power. He was alert, 
quick to see a point and take advantage of it, and of attractive 
personality. 

Stewart, less skilled in oratory, had considerable ability. The 
rivals met in joint debate several times. On each occasion there were 
large and tnmnltnons crowds. The dynamic subject of slavery was up, 
with all its direful portent. State enterprises, various internal im- 
provements, etc., were the less sinister issues trailing along with that 
of the black man. The battle waged fiercely. After a meeting some 
said Rollins had the better of it ; others insisted Stewart had flattened 
his opponent out. At times bloodshed between the heated partisans was 
narrowly averted. At Gallatin a personal encounter occurred between 
Rollins and Stewart on the platform. This came near participating a 
riot among the shouting multitudes, but quiet was finally restored and 
nobody was carried home on a stretcher. 

The contest was marked by bitter sarcasm, withering denunciations 
and dramatic defiance. Whenever the candidates were billed to appear 
it was no trouble to get out a crowd. An edict of the mayor wouldn't 
have kept the people at home. 

Rollins was beaten by 334 votes in a total of 96,640, Stewart was 
inaugurated in January, 1858. His first official act was to pardon 
William Langston out of the penitentiary, where he had been sent for 
complicity in a killing. Langston had at one time nursed Stewart 
through a long and serious illness. Stewart was never the man to for- 
get anyone who had done him a kindness. 

Not long after Stewart became governor of Missouri, Rollins went 
to Jetferson City and registered at the Madison House. Governor 
Stewart met his old antagonist, extended a friendly hand and invited 
him to be his guest at the executive mansion while in town. Rollins 
accepted, and all the animosities of the campaign were wiped out at the 
governor's hospitable board. 

In the fall of 1858 Govenor Stewart issued the first Missouri proc- 
lamation for a day of fasting and prayer in recognition of the Divine 
Blessings to the state and its people. 

When the Civil War came on Govenor Stewart lined up with the 
Union side, and was a member of the Gamble Constitutional Convention 
of 1861. 



CHAPTER VIII 

The Nation's Wars— The Men of 1812— The Last Reunion in 1871— 
Presidential Election of 1860 — Civil Strife — Linn County's 
Prompt and Loyal Action — Early Organizations and Movements' — 
Capture of Two Confederate Cannon — Recruiting by Confederates 
of Linn and Sullivan Counties — Attempts to Capture Them by 
Federal Forces — Why They Failed — The Missouri Guerrilla — 
Raid on Linneus — Killing of Judge Jacob Smith — A Woman Spy — 
Laclede Raided by Bushwackers — Bounty Jumpers — When the 
Draft Came — Record of Engagements by' Linn County Military 
Organizations — The Spanish- American War — The Soldiers' 
Monument at Brookfleld. 

The last reunion of the veterans of the War of 1812 occurred at 
Macon, Mo., in August, 1871. There were present 28 soldiers from 
Linn, Monroe, Marion, Boone, Randolph, Audrain, Shelby, Livingston 
and Macon counties. There was a drum and fife corps composed of the 
old veterans. Nearly every man present was over 70 years of age. 
The occasion was somewhat pathetic, as it was realized by all that it 
was the last meeting of the soldiers of 1812 tliat would be held in 
Missouri. A picture was taken of the group. A copy of this picture 
is now held by a family in Montgomery county. The Linn county 
soldiers represented in the photograph are John Burnett, who was born 
in Kentucky in 1795 ; W. B. Woodruff, born in Kentucky in 1788 ; Henry 
Sipple, born in Virginia in 1791, and Frederick Nestor, born in Virginia 
in 1799. All of these men were living in Linn county at the time of the 
last reunion of the soldiers of the war of 1812. Other Linn county 
citizens who served in that war were as follows : 

Peter Fore, who was a private in Captain Josiah Pinnock's com- 
pany, Cox's Brigade, Virginia; was engaged in the defense of 
Washington. 

Seth Botts, of Captain William Hamilton's company. Colonel Lil- 
lard's regiment; served on the Coosa river, Alabama. 

Jethrow Dodson, served under Captain James Lanier, eastern 
division. 

66 



HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 67 

James Moore, Captain Hay's company, western frontier; was in 
the siege of Fort Erie. 

George Crist, Captain James Hannah's company; served at Nor- 
folk, Va. 

William H. Ballow, second sergeant in Captain Robert Cameron's 
company; served at Camp Washington, Miss. 

Abijah Woods, Captain Caldwell's company; western frontier. 

Jacob G. Bailey, Captain Charles Harney's company. Colonel 
Renick's Tenth Rifle Regiment; was in the battle of the Thames, Can- 
ada; witnessed the rifle duel between Tecumseh and Colonel Whitley, 
and was so close that he could see the flash of both of the duelists' 
weapons, which were fired simultaneously, each shot proving fatal; 
was also present when Colonel Johnson's horse was shot from under 
him, and assisted in taking him out from under the animal. 

David McCollum was the commanding officer in the Kentucky 
militia from 1807 to 1820. 

Milton Parmlee, Captain Hawkins's company; northern frontier. 

Ed P. Dodge, Captain Bean's company; served at Fort Washing- 
ton, N. H. 

Joseph Auberry, of Captain Patterson's company. 

Randolph Bobbitt, Captain John Trimble's company of the Vir- 
ginia militia ; served at Norfolk. 

Hasten Shifflett, Captain Christopher Irvin's company of Ken- 
tuckians; served on northern frontier and was at Colonel Dudley's 
engagement on the River Raisin, Mich. 

James Sportsman and William Southerland; no legal record of 
their service. 

Joseph C. Moore, sergeant in 'Fallon's company of riflemen. 
Served through the war of 1812 in Canada and on the frontier. He was 
granted a patent to N. W. 14 Section 9, Township 58, Range 20, upon 
which he resided from 1842 until his death. 

At the presidential election in 1860, Linn county gave a majority of 
its votes for Stephen A. Douglas. All four of the presidential candi- 
dates — Douglas, Bell, Breckenridge and Lincoln — received votes in Linn 
county. Lincoln received quite a vote in Linn county, and in one of the 
townships he had a plurality. The Linneus Bulletin was a Douglas 
paper edited by T. E. Brawner. It was the only paper in the county 
at the time. After the election the Bulletin said that "Lincoln has been 
fairly elected, and though we do not like it very well, we propose to 
submit. ' ' 

In Governor Jackson's inaugural speech to the Missouri Legisla- 



68 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

ture of 1861, he concluded by recommending the immediate call of a 
state convention in order 'Ho ascertain the will of the people." 

The legislature, on January 17, passed a bill calling for a conven- 
tion, and designating February 18th as the day for electing delegates, 
and February 28th as the date of the convention. The candidates from 
the eight senatorial districts, which included Linn county, were Jacob 
Smith, Alexander M. Woolfolk and William Jackson, who were re- 
garded as ''Unconditional Union" candidates. Charles J. Radcliffe, 
E. F. Canterbury and C. Gr. Fields were considered as "Conditional 
Union" candidates. 

The "Unconditional Union" candidates received about 500 
majority of the votes cast in Linn county and also in the district. 

Events moved rapidly during the first year of the war. Fort 
Sumter surrendered to Beauregard, April 13 ; President Lincoln issued 
a call for 75,000 men the 15th. The men were to be from the militia 
of the several states. Governor Jackson, of Missouri, declared against 
the call. 

Hostilities had begun. The farmers of Linn county began cleaning 
up their rifles and fowling pieces. In Linneus quite a quantity of am- 
munition had been stored. 

Major Watson E. Crandall, of Yellow Creek Township, and Robert 
McCullom, of North Salem Township, began actively organizing a com- 
pany of volunteers for service under the national government. 

Judge Jacob Smith, when not attending to his duties as a member 
of the state convention, directed his efforts towards preventing the 
organizing of Confederate companies. He soon became recognized as 
an intdligent and energetic leader of the Union side. 

Westley Halliburton, who had been a Breckinridge elector the pre- 
vious year, and who was then a state senator from the district, was 
among the most prominent of those advocating the southern cause. 

A company of Home Guards was formed in Yellow Creek Town- 
ship in May. The guards met at Wyandotte and St. Catharine to drill. 
It was intended that this company should be formed under the military 
law passed by the legislature and approved by Governor Jackson, but 
when the guards obtained a copy of the law a majority of them were 
not pleased with its requirements and the company was disbanded. 

The Hannibal & St. Joseph Railroad was an early and important 
arm in the service of the national government. In May troops were 
sent over it from Hannibal to St. Joseph and garrisons established at 
various points along the line. When General Lyon, the intrepid leader 
who fell at Wilson's Creek, assumed command of the Federal forces at 



HISTORY OF LIA^IS" COUNTY 69 

St. Louis he manifested the greatest interest in the railroad shops at 
Brookfield, and also was especially concerned about the bridges in Linn 
county.. He instructed the Union organizations to exercise the greatest 
vigilance in guarding these properties from the threatened attacks of 
the enemy in the neighborhood. Frederick C. Loring, Wesley R. Love 
and Watson E. Crandall were commissioned by General Lyon as cap- 
tains and authorized to raise home companies for the Federal service. 
The three men mentioned lived along the railroad line in Linn county. 

The 16th Illinois Infantry came from Quincy to Linn county in 
June. They were the first regular Federal troops to arrive. The com- 
pany disembarked at Brookfield and at Laclede, some of them remain- 
ing at each place, while others were sent to guard the bridges at Locust 
creek, Yellow creek and Parson creek. It was believed that those 
structures were threatened by the enemy. Reconnoitering parties were 
also sent out. One of these went to Linneus and took some prisoners. 
The Third Iowa Infantry arrived not long afterwards and encamped at 
Brookfield. Colonel Morgan then began the organizing of the 18th 
Missouri Infantry at Laclede. That was in August. Isaac V. Pratt, of 
Laclede, was the first lieutenant-colonel of this regiment, which was 
afterwards commanded by Madison Miller and Charles S. Sheldon, of 
St. Louis. While the 18th Infantry was being organized Colonel Mor- 
gan took his regiment, a section of artillery and two companies of 
cavalry under Captains Love and Loring, and went on a reconnoitering 
expedition into Chariton and Carroll counties, starting out October 
18th. At the crossing of Big Hurricane creek, in Carroll county. Cap- 
tain Love's company was in the advance. Suddenly shots rang out 
from the bushes alongside the road and the cavalrymen began falling 
from their horses. The attack had been made by Confederates, the 
force numbering about 60 men under Captain Logan Ballow. Fifteen 
cavalrymen were badly wounded and sixteen horses killed. Before pur- 
suit could be organized the Confederates had retreated and got out of 
the danger. 

Colonel Morgan continued his march on to DeWitt and from there 
to Brunswick; then he returned to Laclede. 

Colonel Jacob T. Tindall, of Grundy county, was commissioned as 
colonel of the Twenty-third Missouri Infantry in August, and at once 
set about recruiting. His headquarters were Chillicothe. Judge Jacob 
Smith, whose biography appears in the line of Circuit Judges, was com- 
missioned lieutenant-colonel but afterwards resigned and was appointed 
judge of this circuit to fill the vacancy occasioned by the resignation of 
Judge James Clark. 



70 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

Thornton T. Easley, of Linneiis, was commissioned quartermaster 
of the regiment at the same time that Tindall received his commission 
as colonel. 

A company of 25 men was organized at Linneus, August 26, for the 
Twenty-third Missouri with the following officers: Thomas Carter, 
captain ; T. E. Brawner, first lieutenant ; Rice Morris, orderly-sergeant. 
These assignments were temporary. Later Rice Morris was chosen 
captain, and Brawner and Camp became lieutenants. Other Linn 
county men also joined the Twenty-third in other companies. 

The first company organized in Linn county for federal service, 
also said to be the first company organized in Northern Missouri, was 
that of Captain Watson E. Crandall's Home Guards, or the United 
States reserve corps as designated by General Lyon. This company 
was made up about the middle of June and sworn in at Brookfield on 
the 22d by Captain F. C. Loring. The company immediately thereafter 
went into active service. 

By the 1st of September there were several hundred federal troops 
in the county. They were stationed at Brookfield, at Laclede and at the 
railroad bridges. At Laclede, Colonel Morgan had earthworks thrown 
up for the protection of his men. These works were known as "Fort 
Morgan." The work was done chiefly by prisoners and some citizens 
who were imprisoned. Negroes, who had been slaves, were also re- 
quired to assist in constructing the fortifications. 

There were two pieces of cannon. One of these had been cast at a 
foundry in Quincy by the order of Captain Love, who paid for it out 
of his own pocket. 

There were no fortifications at Brookfield. The Sixteenth Blinois, 
a German company from St. Joseph, and Crandall's and Loring 's men 
had given way to the Third Iowa. 

General AV. Y. Slack, appointed as a commander of the Missouri 
State Guard by Governor Jackson for the military district in which 
Linn county was included, purchased two iron cannon from a foundry 
in Palmyra for the use of his division. The cannon were started toward 
General Slack's headquarters at Chillicothe in a covered wagon. Every 
precaution was taken to keep the Federals from finding what was up. 
The pieces would have been sent by railroad, but for fear that some em- 
ployee would tell the Federals. 

The cannon had been not long on the road when the Federals 
learned of it. Word was passed down the line to the various posts to 
keep watch for an innocent looking emigrant wagon, driven by a 
"guileless farmer." 



HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 71 

The 'Mogs of war" were captured by Worthley's and Crandall's 
forces at tlie old Elliott farm, and the guileless looking farmer taken 
into camp With the wagon was a lot of ammunition. The capture 
caused considerable elation among the friends of the national 

government. j r^ 

General Slack had sent out a squad of well-armed men under Cap- 
tain Small to convoy the wagon in, but the Linn county Federals had 
completed their work before the protecting company arrived, and had 
got safely away. It would certainly have been an exciting encounter 
had the two forces met near the guns, as General Slack had given strict 
orders to protect them to the last. 

Keference has been made to some prisoners that were taken at 
Linneus by the Federal forces. One of these was a young merchant, 
William Sandusky by name. After being held a while, Sandusky was 
released and went back to Linneus. There he immediately began organ- 
izing a company for service under General Price and Governor Jackson 
Sandusky found manv willing recruits, but was compelled to proceed 
very cautiously for the Federals were active in all parts of Lmn county, 
and a part of their business was to prevent the organization of Confed- 
erate companies. However, Sandusky managed by the first of Septem- 
ber to get together enough stalwart young men to form a pretty tair 

company. . ,i />( ^ i 

The secret was well kept. About the same time another Oonted- 
erate company was organizing in Sullivan county. It was arranged 
that the two companies should meet, and proceed together to join the 
main army under General Price. ^ ,r , a i^ • 

The Linn county Confederates met at the home of Mark Arnold, m 
Jackson Township, September 12. 

In the organization George W. Sandusky, of Linneus, was elected 
captain The lieutenants chosen were E. H. Eichardson, Taylor Single- 
ton and Henry Cherry. There were about 35 men all told. Jackson 
Township furnished the greatest number. 

Private Thomas H. Flood was sent to Sullivan county to notify the 
Confederates there that the Linn county contingent was ready. Flood 
found the Sullivan county men at Field's mill, eager and wilhng to go 
but witliout a leader. They chose Flood as their captain and he marched 
them down to Mark Arnold's home. Here the two companies, making 
a total of about 75 men, were combined, and Dr. P. C. Flournoy, of Lin- 
neus, was put in charge of the battalion. The soldiers, immediately 
after dark, took up the march for Price's army. They crossed the rail- 
road east of Meadville in safety, though large bodies of Federal troops 



72 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

were on either side of them, actively on the lookout. With the battalion 
were two large wagons loaded with arms, ammunition and provisions. 
At Brunswick they crossed the Missouri river, and then followed the 
river on up to Lexington, where they were welcomed by the men of 
General Price, and where they were sworn in as members of the State 
Guard. It was an auspicious occasion when the Confederates of Sulli- 
van and Linn counties took the oath of allegiance to the Southern flag. 
The important battle of Lexington was at its height, and a short while 
afterwards, the Federal forces under Colonel Mulligan, which held the 
town, surrendered to General Price. The Linn county company took 
part in the operations which led to the capture of the citadel. It was 
designated as Company A, Third Regiment, Third Division Missouri 
State Guards, Ed Price, colonel; William S. Hyde, lieutenant-colonel. 
It afterwards became Company K, second Missouri Infantry, C. S. A. 

Martin Hamilton organized a company of confederates in the 
eastern part of Linn county. 

Hamilton had been an officer in Barbee's company in the Mexican 
War, and had the reputation of being a first-class fighting man. Many 
of his company were from Macon county. The company formed a part 
of Colonel Bevier's Fourth Regiment, in the State Guard. This regi- 
ment became historic. Colonel Bevier wrote a book describing its 
operations. 

Not long after its organization at Laclede, Colonel Morgan's 
Eighteenth Missouri Regiment went to Brookfield, and there remained 
for some time. Later it was ordered to Weston in Piatt county. 

Capt. W, R. Love was in command of the post at Laclede. That 
company and Captain Loring's of the Seventh Missouri Volunteer 
Cavalry had been mustered into the United States service along with 
the Eighteenth Missouri. 

Captain Love explained why the confederate company from Linn 
and Sullivan counties got through the net. He said that he was ap- 
prised of the movement, and that they prepared to intercept the volun- 
teers for the South, but a violent rainstorm set in that night and 
destroyed the effectiveness of their ammunition. It would have been 
impossible in such circumstances to have fired a carbine. So the pur- 
suers dismounted and returned to quarters. 

At the close of 1861 Linn county was in complete control of the 
force of the national government. The bridges were thoroughly pro- 
tected and railroad operations were continued. 

The First Cavalry Regiment was organized in the spring of 1862 
by volunteers from Daviess, DeKalb, Livingston, Linn, Shelby, Putnam 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 73 

and Harrison counties. This regiment was officered as follows : James 
McFerrin, colonel; Alexander M. Woolfolk, lieutenant colonel; A. W. 
Mullins, major. 

Henry Wilkinson, of Linn county, was commissioned as captain of 
Company F, First Cavalry, Missouri State Militia, March 25. John D. 
Mullins and D. P. Woodruff were commissioned as first and second 
lieutenants. Company F was soon filled up and immediately went into 
active service south of the river. 

In the summer of 1862 the Enrolled Missouri Militia, or "E. M. 
M.," was organized. The majority (if not all) of the Linn county men 
belonging to this organization were members of the Sixty-Second Regi- 
ment. The enrolled militia were designed to be used in the localities 
where they were organized, in emergencies and upon extraordinary 
occasions, and for a species of guard and patrol duty. When wanted 
they were summoned to a rendezvous, and when their services were no 
longer needed they were allowed to return to their homes. They were 
armed and uniformed by the United States government, and paid by 
the state for the time they were actually in service. 

Every able-bodied male citizen between the ages of eighteen and 
forty-five was expected to become a member of the Enrolled Missouri 
Militia. Exemptions could be purchased for $.30 at first ; afterwards the 
commutation was made larger ; finally it ceased altogether. 

The majority of the Linn county Enrolled Militia belonged to the 
Sixty-Second Eegiment, as above stated, which was composed mainly 
of Linn and Macon county men. R. J. Eberman, of Macon, was colonel 
of the Sixty-Second; Hamilton DeGraw, of Linn, lieutenant colonel; 
Luther T. Forman and Watson E. Crandall, of Linn, were majors. The 
Linn county companies were: 

Company A, captain, Robert W. Holland ; first lieutenant, John S. 
Baker ; second lieutenant, William B. Brinkley. 

Company C, captain, A. I. Wilkerson ; first lieutenant, Elijah Jones ; 
second lieutenant, John Gooch. 

Company D, captain, Moses G. Roush ; first lieutenant, Samuel A. 
Henley; second lieutenant, Silas M. Bennett. 

Company F, first captain, Jesse Buckman ; second captain, William 
R. Thomas ; first lieutenant, John Branson ; second first lieutenant, 
William Robbins, promoted from second lieutenant. 

Company G, captain. Lacy Sipples; first lieutenant, Thomas Rat- 
tan ; second lieutenant, T. C. Cutler. 

Company — , captain, Barton R. Bryan; first lieutenant, W. H. 
Lewis. 



74 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

There was also a Company G in the Thirty-Eighth Regiment, 
officered as follows : Captain, E. J. Crandall ; first lieutenant, John R. 
"Worthley; second lieutenants, Charles C. Davis and Robinson Tooey. 
This company was known as "The Railroad Brigade." 

The commissions of all of the first officers of the Sixty-Second Regi- 
ment were dated in July and August, 1862. The officers of Company 
G, Thirty-Eighth Regiment, were commissioned September 2. 

The. partisan bands, sometimes called guerrilas or bushwhackers, 
became most active along in 1864. In June one of these organizations 
made raids on Laclede, St. Catharine and Bucklin, and invaded Clay 
and Jackson townships. It is said that there was more real anxiety felt 
by the people of Linn county during this year than at any other period 
of the war. 

The Missouri guerrilla wrote his history in blood. On the western 
border and in the central part of the state William C. Quantrill, George 
Todd, Bill Anderson, Cole Younger, Frank and Jesse James and other 
kindred spirits were riding hard and shooting fast. Men were sacri- 
ficed with as little compunction as one would shoot a cat or dog. While 
presumably on the confederate side, the guerillas did not make very 
close distinctions as to whose house they raided or the political views 
of the people they killed. It was the reign of the black flag, and men 
were shot down remorselessly for trivial things. 

The bands that operated in Linn county were not as well disci- 
plined, nor anything like the "fighting machines" that Quantrill, Bill 
Anderson and their followers were, but they made a great deal of 
trouble just the same. 

Some of the militia companies were not angels either. Many of 
them were from other states, and they operated in whatever manner 
seemed to please them best. The poor farmer was between two mill- 
stones — the bushwhacker and the foreign militiamen. He was the 
commissary department for both factions. He oftimes found it hard 
to save enough to feed his own family and the stock about the place. 
A company of partisans of the South rode up to the house of a well- 
to-do Union man in Clay township and the leader asked if he could 
get supper for his men and food for his horses. "We are after the 
bloody bushwhackers," said the leader; "have you seen any pass this 
way lately?" 

The partisans were dressed much the same as the Union men, 
and the farmer was fooled. 

"Come right in, boys," he said, "and make yourselves at home. 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 75 

You shall have the very best I've got. I hope you'll catch those bush- 
whackers and string 'em up." 

The leader remarked grimly that he would do that very thing, 
and that good Union man had the unique experience of entertaining a 
large party of the enemy under the mistaken idea that they were his 
friends and protectors. 

After faring well, the party started otf, leaving the old man on 
his porch waving them Godspeed, with the Union flag in his hand. 

The most sensational raid by a partisan band in Linn county 
during the war was at Linneus. It was during this exciting time that 
the courageous Judge Jacob Smith was killed. The affair as recorded 
in an old history of Linn county was as follows : 

In the winter of 1864-65 Jim Eider and his band of bushwhackers, 
to the number of about fifteen, had an encampment on an island in the 
Missouri river, near the Carrol county side, not far above and on the 
opposite shore from the town of Waverly, Lafayette county. The river 
was frozen over for a portion of the time, the weather being very cold, 
and Eider could reach either mainland when he wished. From his 
retreat, which was a snug and secure one, the daring bushwhacker 
made frequent forays into the country on both sides of the river, in 
search of plunder more than for the purpose of shedding blood, and 
uniformly returned successful and in safety to his covert well hidden 
in the thick willows of the Missouri river island. 

On the night of the ninth of January, 1865, Eider, at the head of 
about a dozen of his band, made a raid upon Linneus. It was about 
10 o'clock when the bushwhackers reached the town. The moon was 
in the first quarter, and, save that it was occasionally obscured by 
flying clouds which scudded across its face at intervals, gave a fair 
light. There was a light fall of snow upon the ground and objects 
could be seen with tolerable distinctness. Eider and his men came 
into the town from the west. Stopping first at a place where whisky 
was sold they partook freely and then rode on to the square. Quite 
soon they had a bevy of prisoners, the most of whom they robbed. 
They made inquiries for Capt. T. E. Brawner, then of the militia, now 
the Democratic editor of the Bulletin. Had they found him he would 
have been summarily put to death, for Eider bore him an old grudge. 
Fortunately Brawner was in St. Louis. 

One of the bushwhackers was a young man named John Lane, who 
had been born and reared near Linneus. At the breaking out of the 
Civil War he went south of the Missouri river, joined the State Guards, 
and fought at the battle of Wilson's Creek, or Oak Hill, where he was 



76 HISTOBY OF LINN COUNTY 

so severely wounded in the hand that he was discharged from the 
service, after which he returned home, took the oath of allegiance to 
the Gamble government, and lived quietly for some time. Suddenly 
he disappeared and no one knew where he was until he made his 
appearance in Linneus with Rider's bushwhackers, whose guide and 
pilot he doubtless was on the occasion. Soon after entering the town, 
young Lane made his way to the premises of Judge Jacob Smith and 
appropriated a fine horse. 

Upon the appearance of the bushwhackers in the place the alarm 
was given, and there was great excitement and commotion. Several 
shots were fired; someone shouted ''Fire!" others cried "Robbers!" 
and some made as little noise as possible. The bushwhackers first 
made a descent upon the store of Messrs. Brownlee, Trumbo & Dillon. 
They ascertained that Dr. Dillon had the key to the store safe (in 
which was a considerable sum of money) and so some of them went to 
the doctor's residence after it. The doctor became suspicious and 
alarmed when his visitors knocked on the door and slipped out the 
back way to avoid and escape them. Just as he was climbing the fence 
at the rear of his premises the bushwhackers discovered him and fired 
upon him, one revolver ball striking him on the head, glancing off, but 
knocking him down. Presuming they had killed him, the bushwhackers 
returned to the square. 

Meantime Judge Jacob Smith, then judge of this circuit, had 
secured a musket belonging to a company of "exempts" of the place, 
of which he was captain, and was on the lookout for the marauders. 
He was seated on a woodpile in front of a house that stood about 
where the residence of Mr. Colgan now stands, near the northeast 
corner of the square, and a little west of the railroad track. Along 
came John Lane, mounted on the judge's horse and riding eastward. 
Smith raised his musket, fired, and mortally wounded Lane, the charge 
of buckshot striking him in the leg and severing or penetrating the 
femoral artery; one or two shot also struck the horse, and it galloped 
away. Smith immediately started for the courthouse, where some 
of the arms belonging to the ' ' exempts ' ' were stored, shouting ' ' Come 
on, boys; rally at the courthouse!" As he reached the courthouse 
fence the bushwhackers fired on him, shooting him through the bowels, 
and he fell. He made his way unassisted to the residence of Dr. D. I. 
Stephenson, who lived in the western part of Linneus, and was after- 
ward removed to his own house on the east side of the square, now 
occupied by Major Mullins as a law office and by S. D. Sandusky as 
his office, where he died on the eleventh, two days later. 



HISTORY OF LIXN COUNTY 77 

About the time Judge Smith was at Dr. Stephenson's, Mr. William 
D. Pendleton, who lived in the northeast part of town, hearing the 
disturbance, seized his gun and started for the public square. As 
he reached a point oposite the M. E. Church, two of Eider's men 
met him and asked him where he was going. Mr. Pendleton replied 
that, hearing an uncommon noise in town he had come out to investi- 
gate. He was taken toward the square, and a few rods south of the 
church Eider and some others of his followers were met. ''Here's a 
man with a gun who is out after us; what shall we do with him?" 
said Pendleton's captors to their leader. "Shoot him down!" replied 
Eider. Pendleton started to run, but the bushwhackers put three 
balls into his body and he fell dead. 

By this time the town was pretty well alarmed. John Lane was 
bleeding to death, there was no prospect of making a rich haul of 
plunder, and so Eider prepared to retreat. Going to a livery stable, 
the bushwhackers secured a horse and buggy and into the latter placed 
Lane, whose life-blood was ebbing fast, and started out of town, going 
south. At Ennis Eeed's, a mile and a half from town, they stopped 
and got some water. At Mr. Cox's, near the line of the Hannibal & 
St. Joe Eailroad, they again stopped, and by this time Lane was dead. 
Carrying his body to the door, they said to Mr. Cox: "Here's a dead 
bushwhacker. We have been to Linneus and killed about a dozen 
men. You take this man's body back there and have those fellows 
bury it decently, or we will come back and kill a dozen more!" Then 
they passed on and away to their rendezvous, which was shortly after- 
ward broken up by the Carroll county militia. 

The citizens did not pursue Eider. Ammunition was scarce, and 
what arms there were in the place could not be considered effective. 
The condition of Judge Smith and the dead body of Pendleton engaged 
the attention of nearly everybody in the town for a time. Lane's 
body was decently buried in the Linneus cemetery. A company of the 
militia the next day made pursuit, but it was ineffectual. 

The bushwhackers carried away a few watches (one gold), some 
goods, a pistol or two, and a few dollars. The loss in property by their 
raid was but trifling; but the loss of the lives of Judge Smith and Mr. 
Pendleton was irreparable. Judge Smith was a valuable man to the 
county and country. His death was greatly deplored throughout 
north-central Missouri and other parts of the state where he was 
well known. 

It is said that a few days before Eider's raid the town was visited 
and thoroughly investigated by a well-dressed, handsome young lady, 



78 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

who was mounted on *'a gallant steed" which she managed with great 
dexterity. She visited, among other places, Browne, Trumbo & Dillon's 
store, and took in the situation very completely before leaving. Where- 
from she came and whereto she went, no one in Linneus seemed to 
know; but it was charged that she was a spy for the bushwhackers. 
The same lady was seen in different parts of the country at other times. 

Upon the disappearance of the bushwhackers a young man of 
Linneus, who had at different times enlisted in the Federal service 
and as often deserted, and who had been employed in a livery stable,, 
also disappeared; and it was charged that he, also, was an agent of 
Rider's raiders. Not long after he was killed in Andrew county. 

Previous to this raid, bushwhackers had made occasional inva- 
sions of the towns, causing a reign of terror wherever they went. 
Sometimes they merely rode through a place, shouting and firing off 
their revolvers. At other times they would make the citizens hand 
over their ready cash and watches. Oftimes the raiders could not be 
identified as belonging to any particular band, but only seemed to be 
animated by a spirit of unrest and also by a desire to acquire other 
people's property without working for it. They figured as nothing 
in the advancement of either the northern or southern cause. 

The draft was run in Missouri in 1864. Linn county had con- 
tributed its full quota to the Union army and also to the Southern, 
but affairs had become so critical that the government found it neces- 
sary to resort to every possible means to increase the military force. 
In many counties large bounties were offered for volunteers. 

Laclede Raided by Bushwhackees 

One of the most exciting episodes which happened at Laclede was 
known as the Holtzclaw raid. On Saturday, June 18, 1864, at about 
4 in the afternoon. Captain Holtzclaw with between sixteen and thirty 
men dashed into this place from the west, entering the town between 
the postoffice and Clarkson's old stand. Although it was broad day- 
light, such was the carelessness of the citizens that the invaders rode 
one mile along the big road through the open prairie without being 
seen until they announced their presence in the town with yells most 
terrific. Hitching their horses at the racks, they instantly ordered 
the business men out of their houses and formed them with the male 
citizens from the country in a line on the public square, manifestly 
to prevent them from getting their arms or carrying information to 
the soldiers at Brookfield. This done, the work of i3lundering com- 
menced in the postoffice and store occupied by John F. Pershing. 



HISTORY OF LINX COUNTY 79 

Crossing to the east portion of the town they found quite a number 
of citizens in Earl's hall, unarmed, except David Crowder, a dis- 
charged soldier, who had a revolver. Seeing the situation, one man or 
more with shotguns cocked and presented, he took deliberate aim from 
the window and mortally wounded James Nave. A comrade of Nave's 
instantly shot Mr. Crowder dead. At this a portion of the men came 
down the stairway, while others rushed out at the east wmdow, jump- 
ing on top of Mrs. Earl's residence and thence to the ground. Among 
these was Squire John H. Jones, a good man and a lawyer of this 
place. He, with the rest, was halted the third time, but he continued 
to run, trying, as supposed, to get to his drug store, when he was shot 
dead on the street leading to Linneus. At this Captain Holtzclaw came 
up and expressed deep regret, stating that it was not his intention to 
hurt any one, but that his orders must be respected and obeyed. '\\Tiile 
these things were occurring two men had escaped from town, and 
making their way to Brookfield gave the alarm, and in the course of 
two hours or less a train with Federal soldiers from that place came 
in sight. Captain Holtzclaw, with his men, quietly withdrew south 
by the Bell house, sending Mr. Nave west in the Linneus hack. The 
soldiers made pursuit, one squad on the locomotive west after the hack ; 
running parallel, they fired repeated volleys at it, wounding Nave a 
second time and mortally wounding one of the men with him, and it 
was generally supposed the other was mortally wounded also. 

The squad going south accomplished nothing. While Captain 
Holtzclaw 's men were plundering the stores, he made a short speech 
to the citizens, in substance as follows: 

He had no ill-feeling towards any Union man simply because he 
was such, but had visited Laclede in retaliation to outrages committed 
upon his friends about Keytesville. There are, he said, some Aboli- 
tionists in this place who ought to be executed, and that if he had to 
visit the place again he would lay it in ruins and deal less leniently 
with the people. If he heard that any of his Southern friends were 
abused, or his men hurt or killed, or if pursued by the citizens, he 
would deal with them severely, killing two for every one of his men 

killed. 

He added : " I am well posted and know all that is going on here. ' ' 
He left no list of his Southern friends, and the editor added that 

they didn't know there were any there if he had not told them. 

The value of goods, money and stock taken by the raiders amounted 

to over $3,000. It is believed that Captain Holtzclaw did not intend 



80 HISTORY OF LIXN COUNTY 

to kill any one, with the possible exception of two men for whom his 
men made frequent calls, but neither of them was in town at the time. 

He could have killed fifty men and burned the town had he been 
so disposed, for the whole was completely in his power. We feel 
certain that had Mr. Crowder not shot, and Mr. Jones halted when 
commanded, they would both be now alive, and this is the impression 
of the entire community. The raiders did not, it was thought, accom- 
plish all they intended, and the editor thinks the people would be to 
blame if they were again caught asleep after the warning they had 
received. Nave was considered the pilot of the band, his home having 
been near Meadville, and he was well acquainted in Laclede. He died 
next day at the house of a man named Stepp. 

One instance of another kind that took place in Laclede was that 
of a Mr. Love, one of the citizens, when ordered out to the square 
dropped his pocketbook containing a couple of hundred dollars by a 
log in hopes of saving it. His daughter. Miss Lauretta, came out to 
see her father while under guard, and he told her what he had done. 
She was quick-witted, and knowing that she could only get it by 
startagem, quietly loosened her skirt as she came to the log, and seeing 
the pocketbook let loose of the skirt as she stepped upon the log and 
dropped it, of course. She blushed, of course, at such a mishap, but 
gathered up her skirt; but in doing so that pocketbook was found in 
it somehow on reaching home. This was $200 saved. She afterwards 
became Mrs. Cowles, of Ottumwa, Iowa. 

Note. — (The above account is taken from a newspaper published 
in the county at that time. — Editor) 

Colonel Sartain, one of Poindexter's men, who fired on the steamer 
White Cloud on the Missouri river, was captured and brought to 
Laclede, where he was tried and shot. He received his death standing, 
saying he knelt to no man. His body was given decent burial. 

During the Civil War Laclede was a center of military operations. 
Just south of the railroad track, where one of the churches now stands, 
was the site of earthworks thrown up by Union soldiers for the defense 
of the town in case of attack by Confederates or to repel raids of the 
bushwhackers, which was known as Fort Morgan. 

In the beautiful little park that now occupies the center of town 
can yet be seen traces of the old stockade, which was erected during 
the Civil War and is a stern but silent reminder of those dark and 
terrible days that have long since passed away. 

There developed in some parts of the country a species of individ- 
ual known as the '* bounty jumpers." Some of these enterprising char- 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 81 

acters carried on a regular business of enlisting in one place under a 
certain name, hurrying to the front, receiving the bounty, deserting 
at once upon its receipt, and reappearing in some other place under 
a different name, there to re-enlist and repeat the performance. Of 
course the risk of such a business as this was great, but as the bounty 
was quite large in some cases there were men who were willing to take 
the chances to secure it. 

When the draft was run in Missouri Capt. Moses G. Roush, of 
Laclede, was appointed enrolling officer. He reported subject to mili- 
tary duty 646 men of the first class, between eighteen and forty years 
of age ; 300 of the second class, over forty and under forty-five. This 
made a total of 946. 

Following is a copy of a draft issued against a Randolph county 
man in 1864: 

"Provost Marshal's Office, Eighth District of Missouri, November 
16, 1864. 

*'To Augustine Bradshear, Salt Spring township, Randolph 
county, Missouri. 

*'Sir: Y"ou are hereby notified that you were, on the 16th day of 
November, 1864, legally drafted in the service of the United States for 
the period of one year, in accordance with the provision of the act of 
congress 'for enrolling and calling out the national forces, and for 
other purposes,' approved March 3, 1863, and the act amendatory 
thereof, approved February 24, 1864. You will accordingly report on 
the 30th of November, 1864, at the place of rendezvous in Macon, Mis- 
souri, or be deemed a deserter, and be subject to the penalty prescribed 
therefor by the rules and articles of war. 

''Henry W. Hollingsworth, captain and provost marshal. Eighth 
district of Missouri. 

"N. B. The name of the drafted man must be written out in full." 

With the notification of the draft was an order on the Northern 
Missouri Railroad directing it to furnish transportation for the drafted 
man from Allen (now Moberly) to Macon, Missouri, at government 
rates. 

The Linn county court otfered a bounty of $100 to each man who 
would volunteer his services to the national government for a year. 
Those enlisting for six months were given $50. The amount for which 
the county became liable under this order was $15,500. A tax of one 
dollar on the hundred was levied to pay it. 

J.ust before peace came in the spring of 1865, the Linn county 
court ordered that a sufficient amount of money be borrowed by Linn 



82 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

county out of the different county school funds of the county to arm a 
company of seventy men with one Spencer rifle and two revolvers each ; 
$1,000 to be paid down and the balance in ninety days. 

E. G. AVaters and T. T. Easley were appointed to carry out the 
order. Before the company had need for the arms peace was declared 
and the war was ended. 

Following is a synopsis of the historical record of some of the 
military organizations from Linn county: 

The Twenty-Third Missouri. Recruiting began in July, 1861, by 
Jacob T. Tindall, Grundy county, and Judge Jacob Smith, Linn county. 
The men enlisted were principally farmers and land owners from the 
counties of Grundy, Livingston, Linn, Putnam, Mercer, Harrison, Da- 
viess, and Carroll. 

In August, 1861, Mr. Tindall was given authority by Major-General 
Fremont, then commanding the department of the West, who raised a 
regiment of Missouri Volunteers to serve three years, or during the 
war, unless sooner discharged. 

Mr. Tindall proceeded on the commission with the utmost dispatch. 

By the first of September he had recruited enough men to form 
seven companies. He Avas ordered to Benton Barracks with his com- 
mand. There his men were mustered into the service of the United 
States, clothed, armed and equipped, and put on duty in the city of 
St. Louis, where they remained until October 15, 1861. 

The principal service of the Twenty-Third during the winter of 
1861 was preserving the peace in neighboring counties and in protect- 
ing the life and property of the Union men. 

Lieut.-Col. Jacob Smith resigned his military position January 25, 
1862, for the purpose of accepting a position on the bench which was 
tendered him by the governor of Missouri. The vacancy in the regi- 
ment occasioned by Colonel Smith's retirement was filled by an officer 
named Quin Morton. Morton had distinguished himself in the defense 
of Lexington. 

In March Colonel Tindall was ordered to proceed with his regi- 
ment to St. Louis and report to the commanding officer at Benton Bar- 
racks, Missouri. There his men were given new suits of uniform and ex- 
changed their Austrian rifles for Springfield muskets, calibre 69. By 
the end of the month the Twentj^-third was in splendid condition and 
anxious for active service. 

The regiment started for Pittsburg Landing, Tennessee, April 1, 
1862. It arrived on the 4th. Upon reporting to Maj.-Gen. U. S. Grant, 
then commanding the army of Tennessee. Colonel Tindall was ordered to 



HISTOEY OF LIX^T COUNTY - 83 

report with his regiment to General Prentiss, commanding the sixth 
division. On the morning of the 6th the Twenty-Third, under com- 
mand of Colonel Morton, left Pittsburg Landing to join the sixth divi- 
sion, then supposed to be about three miles away. After marching two 
miles a large number of stragglers were met hurrying towards the 
Landing. They stated that their regiment had been cut to pieces. 

An officer of Greneral Prentiss's staff rode up to the commanding 
officer of the regiment and ordered him to get ready for action. The 
men stripped themselves of everything except what they would need 
in the fight and with an alacrity unusual for volunteers entering upon 
their first battle, went into the fray. 

Following is the report of the lieutenant-colonel concerning the 
action of the Twenty-Third at Pittsburg Landing, the report being 
made to Gov. H. R. Gamble: 

Lexington, Missouri, December, 1, 1862. 

Governor: I deem it my duty to make a report of the action of the 
Twenty-Third Regiment, Missouri Volunteers, at Pittsburg Landing 
on April 6, 1862. At 7 o'clock a. m., by order of Col. J. T. Tindall, I 
marched the regiment in the direction of General Prentiss's camp. 
After marching about two miles an officer of General Prentiss's staff 
ordered us to halt and prepare for action, which was promptly done. 
As soon as the regiment was placed in position the enemy opened fire 
on us by a battery at about 400 yards distance, which was continued 
without intermission for two hours. 

We were then ordered to change our position and to engage a large 
force of the enemy who were pressing upon the center, which was done. 
x\fter a severe engagement at the distance of twenty-five or thirty 
yards, we drove the enemy back, not, however, without serious loss. 
We held the position assigned us until 4 o'clock p. m., fighting almost 
without intermission, at which time we were ordered to change our 
front to meet the enemy, who had outflanked us. Here we fought until 
5 o'clock, driving the enemy back, although they charged us frequently 
during the time. Again we were compelled to change our position, and 
soon after this change we were surrounded and fired upon, from front 
and rear, by two batteries and infantry. Here there was a most terrible 
shower of shot and shell. We repulsed the enemy in our rear and 
determined to try and reach the main body of the army, which had 
fallen back to the river; and in the effort to lead our now broken 
forces back, the gallant and much lamented Colonel Tindall fell, shot 
through the body, after having done his duty most nobly during the day. 



84 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

After retiring about two hundred yards, we were met by a large 
force of the enemy, and compelled to surrender at about 6 o'clock p. m., 
after ten hours almost incessant fighting. Officers and men behaved 
nobly. I feel it my duty to mention the gallant conduct of Maj. John 
McCullough, who displayed great coolness and bravery throughout the 
day. Captains Dunlap, Eobison and Brown, and Adjutant Martin, and 
Lieutenants Munn and Sims were wounded. Thirty privates were 
killed, about 170 wounded, and 375 were taken prisoners. 

This report would have been made much earlier, but being a pris- 
oner until very recently I have not been in a situation to make it. 
Most respectfully, your obedient servant, 

QuiN Morton, Lieutenant -Colonel. 
Twenty-Third Eegiment, Missouri Volunteers. 

The following soldiers of Company F of the Twenty-Third were 
killed at Pittsburg Landing: 

William Hooker, first sergeant; James Pollard, fifth sergeant; 
James Parish, first corporal; James W. Hays and John McCanon, pri- 
vates. 

Officers Company F, Twenty-Third Missouri Infantry (original 
organization): Captain, Thomas Carter; first lieutenant, Thomas E. 
Brawner; second lieutenant, N. Judson Camp; first sergeant, Eice 
Morris ; second sergeant, William F. Eeynolds ; fourth sergeant, Will- 
iam J. Furbee ; fifth sergeant, Francis M. Jones ; first corporal, Eobert 
F. Oxley; second, George Nichols; third, William Hooker; fourth, 
Thomas B. Eeid; fifth, James W. Gooch; sixth, William Hawkins; 
seventh, Eobert B. Smith ; eighth, David C. Pierce. 

Under the reorganization of Company F, as it went into the battle 
described, it was officered as follows : 

Captain, Eice Morris; first lieutenant, Thomas E. Brawner; second 
lieutenant, N. Judson Camp; first sergeant, William Hooker; second, 
William F. Eeynolds; third, William J. Furbee; fourth, Francis M. 
Jones; fifth, James G. Pollard; first corporal, Eobert F. Oxley; second, 
William Hawkins ; third, Eichard M. Ogle ; fourth, Elisha Jones ; fifth, 
John Carter; sixth, John W. Chapman; seventh, Grandison W. Burt; 
eighth, James Parish ; musicians, Hiram A. Sisson and Joseph 0. Hurl- 
but; wagoner, Levi Cook. 

The adjutant-general's report for 1865 gives this description of 
the operations of the Thirty-Third, under date of Nashville, Tennessee, 
December 9, 1864 : 

General: I have the honor to submit herewith the memoranda of 



HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 85 

operations of this regiment since organization, as requested in your 
note of September. 

The Thirty-third Missouri Infantry was recruited under the pat- 
ronage of the Union Merchants' Exchange of St. Louis and was there- 
fore styled the "Merchants' Regiment." Its original field officers 
were : Colonel, Clinton B. Fisk, secretary of the Merchants' Exchange ; 
lieutenant-colonel, William A. Pyle, captain in First Missouri Artil- 
lery; major, W. H. Heath, adjutant of the Eighteenth Illinois Infantry. 

It was ordered to the field September 22, 1862, under command 
of Lieutenant-Colonel Pyle, and made several severe marches through 
Phelps, Dent, Texas and Wright counties, Missouri. December 19, re- 
turned to St. Louis. December 23, Colonel Fisk was appointed briga- 
dier-general, Lieutenant-Colonel Pyle was made colonel, and Major 
Heath lieutenant-colonel. Same day the regiment moved by steamer to 
Columbus, Kentucky, that place being threatened. January 5, 1863, 
moved to Helena, Arkansas, and took part in General Gorman's expedi- 
tion to Duvall's Bluff, Arkansas, returning to Helena January 20, at 
which place more than 100 men died from exposure within one month. 
February 24, formed part of Gen. L. F. Ross's expedition to Fort Pem- 
berton, Mississippi, know as the "Yazoo Pass expedition." Regiment 
was under fire here for the first time, doing efficient service in con- 
structing field works, mounting siege guns, reconnoitering the enemy's 
position and capturing his pickets. April 8 returned to Helena, and 
May 5 the regiment was placed in charge of the fortifications and 
artillery of that garrison, numbering 18 pieces of heavy and light 
caliber. Same date, four siege guns were taken from the fortifications 
and replaced by light artillery. July 14, 1863, the regiment, supported 
by detachments of the Forty-Third Indiana, Thirty-Third Iowa and 
Thirty-Fifth Missouri, held their works against the combined forces 
of Price, Hohnes and Marmaduke, repelling numerous heavy assaults 
and sustaining a continuous musketry fire for six hours. Total loss 
of the regiment in this fight was forty-nine. Although this was the 
first battle in which the regiment had borne part, their intrepidity is 
sufficiently attested by the terrible punishment inflicted upon the enemy 
as compared with the small loss sustained by the regiment. January 
28, 1864, left Helena with troops of General Sherman to join the expedi- 
tion to Meridian, Mississippi. Regiment temporarily assigned to Gen- 
eral Veatch's division, and marched with it to Clinton, Mississippi. 
Ordered back and assigned to General Tuttle's division. March 10, 
Gen. Joseph A. Mower assumed command of the division and the regi- 
ment moved from Vicksburg with the expedition to Red River, Louisi- 



86 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

ana. March 14, regiment was present, in reserve, at tlie capture of 
Fort DeRussey. March 21 the regiment, in conjunction with the Thirty- 
Fifth Iowa, captured Henderson Hill, Louisiana, by a midnight sur- 
prise and assault, securing the Second Louisiana Tigers (cavalry) and 
Edgar's Texas Battery, with horses, arms, ammunition and colors com- 
plete. April 9 regiment took part in the gallant and overwhelming 
defeat of the enemy at Pleasant Hill, Louisiana, capturing a five-gun 
battery in the final charge. 

In this battle Lieutenant-Colonel Heath received a wound in the 
head, and the command of the regiment fell to Major Van Beck. 
May 16 the regiment took part in the battle of Marksville, Louisiana ; 
losses small. May 18 took part in the battle of Bayou de Glaize. 
May 14 the troops of the Sixteenth Army Corps returned to Vicksburg. 
June 6 the regiment took part in the attack upon Marmaduke's forces 
at Old River Lake, Arkansas, Major Van Beck, by seniority, command- 
ing third brigade. Mower's division, and Capt. A. G. Campbell, Com- 
pany C, commanding the regiment. This brigade, composed of the 
Thirty-Third Missouri and Thirty-Fifth Iowa, was ordered to charge 
the enemy, who were strongly posted on the opposite side of a bayou, 
and made the charge in gallant style, passing over the skirmishers of 
another brigade which had failed to advance, and, moving unthinkingly 
forward to the bank of the bayou, which was then found to be unford- 
able. Notwithstanding this obstacle they stood up bravely, and at 
forty paces distance poured in such a galling fire that the rebels broke 
and ran in confusion. The regiment lost here in a few minutes forty-one 
men; rebel loss not great, but the fight compelled the withdrawal of a 
battery from Columbia, Arkansas, which had seriously interrupted 
the navigation of the Mississippi river. June 10 the regiment arrived 
at Memphis, Tennessee, and immediately joined an expediton against 
Lee and Forrest in Mississippi, Lieutenant-Colonel Heath having re- 
turned and assumed command. July 13, guarding train during an 
attack upon it by Lee's cavalry. July 14, took part in the battle at 
Tupelo, Mississippi, joining in the charge and driving the rebel lines, 
capturing one cavalry squad. July 15, took part in second battle at 
Tupelo, joining in a second charge and routing the enemy. Total 
losses in the three days' fighting, thirty-six men. July 22 arrived in 
Memphis. July 31, moved from Memphis with expedition to Oxford, 
returning to Memphis August 30. September 3, moved from Memphis 
with General Mower's column to re-enforce general Steele. September 
17, moved from Brownsville, Arkansas, to Cape Girardeau, Missouri. 
Moved by steamer to St. Louis, arriving October 9 and, remaining 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 87 

but one day to draw clothing, pushed on immediately up the Missouri 
river to join the column against Price. October 18, the regiment being 
too much reduced in numbers and officers to be effective in the field, was 
ordered to garrison at California and Tipton, Missouri, November 17, 
the regiment returned to St. Louis. November 24, moved by water from 
St. Louis to Nashville, Tennessee, to aid in the defense of that city 
against Hood. 

Since its organization the regiment has marched nearly 1,500 miles, 
besides many thousands of miles traveled by water and rail, and has 
lost in killed and wounded a total of 170 men; has captured two flags, 
six pieces of artillery and many prisoners. It has been very fortunate 
in having young and energetic line officers, and in all service has had 
but two officers killed and two seriously wounded. The regiment had 
originally nearly 1,000 men, and has received about 60 recruits. It 
numbers now 490 men, aggregate, but 317 of these being fit for 
active duty. 

I remain. General, very respectfully, your obedient servant, 

WiuiiiAM H. Heath, 
Lieutenant-Colonel Commanding. 

Gen. John B. Gray, Adjutant-General of Missouri. 

St. Louis, Missouri, November 7, 1865. 
Colonel Samuel P. Simpson, Adjutant-General of Missouri: Sir — 
In reply to your request for a history of operations of the Thirty-third 
Eegiment, Missouri Infantry Volunteers, in 1865, I have the honor to 
say after my last report to you the regiment participated in the battles 
of Nashville, December 15 and 16, 1864, joining in charging the rebel 
battery on Hillsboro Pike, December 15, and in the grand charge on 
the sixteenth which broke Hood's army finally to pieces, the loss in 
this latter charge being forty-three killed and wounded, among them 
Adjt. S. E. Day and First Lieut. Thomas Kutledge. The regiment 
then marched with the Sixteenth Army Corps to Clifton, Tennessee, 
and from there by transport to Eastport, Mississippi, remaining at 
the latter place until February 6, when they joined the column for 
the reduction of Mobile, moving by transport via New Orleans to Pen- 
sacola Bay and thence to Dauphin Island; here joined General Candy's 
column, and participated in the siege of the Spanish Fort and Blakely, 
having five wounded at the former place. After the reduction of 
Mobile, moved by land to Montgomery, Alabama, and from there by 
water to Selma, Alabama, May 1 ; remained at Selma as provost guard 
until the twentieth of July, 1865, when the regiment received orders 



88 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

to proceed to St. Louis for muster out, where it arrived August 3, 
and was mustered out of service August 10, 1865. 
I have the honor to be your obedient servant, 

William H. Heath, 
Brevet-Colonel Volunteers. 

Company F, First Cavalry, Missouri State Militia 

H. Wilkinson, captain; date of commission, March 25, 1862; rank 
from March 12, 1862 ; postoffice, Linneus, Missouri ; resigned, February 
14, 1863. 

James B. Moore, captain ; date of commission, February 27, 1863 ; 
rank from February 24, 1863 ; postoffice, Linneus, Missouri ; mustered 
out at expiration of term, March, 1865. 

John D. Mullins, first lieutenant; date of commission, March 25, 
1862; rank from March 21, 1862; postoffice, Linneus, Missouri; killed 
on Price's raid, October 23, 1864. 

D. A. Woodruff, second lieutenant ; date of commission, March 25, 
1862; rank from March 12, 1862; postoffice, Linneus, Missouri; mus- 
tered out at expiration of term, March 11, 1865. 

The following members of this company were killed in action: 
John Couch, killed by cannon ball near Westport, Missouri, October 23, 
1864, time of Price's raid. The same shot killed another, whose name 
has been forgotten. Lieut. John D. Mullins was killed in the same 
engagement. Samuel Stokes, Arthur Eobinson and Samuel Powell 
were killed south of the Missouri river in bushwhacker skirmishes. 

This company made a clean record and did some very effective 
service in the state during hostilities, especially against bushwhackers 
and the raids made by Price and Shelby. 

Three companies of the Forty-Second Missouri Infantry were from 
Linn county. Following were the officers : 

Company A, captain, William H. Lewis; first lieutenants, Charles 
C. Clifton, and Herman Kemper; second lieutenants, Fielding Lewis, 
and T. F. Cutler. 

Company F, captain, Henry Shook ; first lieutenant, C. W. Watts ; 
second lieutenant, Elijah Jones. 

Company I, captain, John F. Powers; first lieutenant, Edward 
Cox ; second lieutenant, T. B. L. Hardin. 

The following history of the services of the regiment has been 
derived from an official report; 

The organization of the Forty-Second Regiment Infantry, Missouri 
Volunteers, was commenced under the auspices of Col. William Forbes 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 89 

about the 2nd of August, 1864. It was supposed at this date that the 
regiment was being recruited for home service. About the last of the 
month several embryo companies were collected at Macon and recruit- 
ing progressed rapidly. All available men were kept constantly on 
the scout, and with what success official reports of the operations at 
the time will indicate. 

On the 15th day of September the regiment numbered 900 men (it 
afterwards numbered 956). On the 23rd of September Lieutenant- 
Colonel Stauber was ordered to Sturgeon, Missouri, with Companies A, 
C and H. They remained at that point and at Columbia, Missouri, during 
Price 's raid. The other companies of the regiment were stationed along 
the line of the North Missouri and Hannibal & St. Joseph Railroads, 
with headquarters at Macon. A portion of the regiment was mounted 
and did scouting duty in Macon, Randolph, Chariton, Howard, Boone, 
and Monroe counties, until the 10th of November, 1864, when orders 
were received from General Rosecrans to proceed at once to Paducah, 
Kentucky. The command was ordered to rendezvous at Macon, from 
.which point it started on the 12th, and arrived at St. Louis on the 13th. 
The regiment was reported to General Rosecrans with the statement 
that the organization was incomplete — the field and several of the line 
officers not having been commissioned. We were ordered to Benton 
Barracks; remained there until the 29th. The commissioners were 
received, musters made and the regiment paid during the interim. 

On the 29th, in pursuance of original order, we started on trans- 
port and reported on the 2nd of December to General Meredith, of 
Paducah, Kentucky. We were ordered by him to proceed at once to 
Nashville, and there report to General Thomas. We arrived at Clarks- 
ville, Tennessee, on the 5th of December, where, by order of Colonel 
Smith, Eighty-Third Illinois Infantry, through instructions from Gen- 
eral Thomas, we returned to Fort Donaldson, Tennessee. We arrived 
at Fort Donaldson on the 6th and remained at Fort Donaldson until the 
30th. During the time death held high carnival in our camp, 150 men 
being buried there. On the 30th we started for Nashville and arrived 
there on the 31st; remained, awaiting transportation until the 2nd of 
January. Started on the 2nd for Tullahoma, Tennessee, arrived at 
Tullahoma on the 3rd. Colonel Forbes was given command of the post 
and retained it until mustered out. About the 12th of January Lieu- 
tenant-Colonel Stauber, with a detachment of the regiment, was sent 
by General Milroy to intercept Lyon, who was returning from his Ken- 
tucky raid. The enterprise failed, but chase was given and several of 
Lyon's men captured. About the same time Captain Lewis, in com- 



90 HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 

mand of Company A, and a detachment of Company K, were sent to 
McMinnville, Tennessee, and remained there until ordered to be mus- 
tered out. 

Detachments from this time forward were constantly on the scout. 
On the 22nd of March Colonel Forbes, one assistant surgeon and the 
chaplain were mustered out by order of Major-General Thomas. 

The time of three six-months' companies, H, I, and K, having 
expired, thereby reducing the number of the regiment below the mini- 
mum, about the same time the remainder of the regiment was ordered 
to Shelbyville, Tennessee, where it remained as a garrison, doing occa- 
sional scouting service, until the 23rd of June, when, under orders of the 
department commander, we proceeded to Nashville, where we were 
mustered out on the 28th of June, 1865. Thence we proceeded to St. 
Louis, arriving there on the 2nd of July, and were finally discharged 
and were paid on the 8th, 9th, 10th, 11th, and 12th at St. Louis, Missouri. 

Company M, Twelfth Missouri Volunteer Cavalry, Capt. Oscar F. 
Smith, was recruited from Linn, Sullivan, Putnam, Mercer and (xrundy 
counties. It was mustered into the United States service at Benton 
Barracks, St. Louis, Missouri, March 16, 1864. In the early spring of that 
year it accompanied the regiment from St. Louis to Memphis, Tennessee, 
where it entered the field under the command of General Hatch and 
continued in active service from that time until the close of the war. 
The regiment was under the command of General Hatch, of Iowa, until 
after the close of the fighting with Confederates under General Hood 
in their retreat from Nashville, Tenn., in December, 1864. 

In March, 1865, Company M, including all of the Third Battalion 
of the Twelfth Regiment, was detailed to go with Gen. James H. Wilson 
on his rapid march through Mississippi, Alabama, and Georgia. The 
company started on that campaign on the 25tli of March, 1865, from 
Eastport, Mississippi, and was on the entire march made by General 
Wilson, ending at Macon, Georgia, April 22, 1865. They afterwards 
returned to this state by way of Atlanta, Georgia, Chattanooga, Nash- 
ville, through Kentucky, reaching St. Louis, Missouri, June 29, 1865. 
The battalion (Companies I, K, L, and M) were afterward ordered to 
join the regiment, which had been sent to Omaha, Nebraska, and then 
to Fort Kearney, Nebraska, where Captain Smith's resignation was 
accepted September 13, 1865. The regiment's term of service was con- 
cluded on the plains. Captain Smith left the command at Fort Kearney 
September 14, 1865, and returned to his home in Linneus in the latter 
part of the same month. 



HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 91 

F. W. Powers was second lieutenant of Company L, Twelfth Mis- 
souri Cavalry, and E. S. Cline was sergeant. 

Some of the officers of Company L, Seventh Cavalry, were as fol- 
lows: Captain, Wesley R. Love; sergeant, William B. Vermilya; cor- 
poral, Charles W. Benton. This company was in the "Hurrican fight" 
in Carroll county. 

Following were the officers of the ''Linn County Rangers," Captain 
Crandall's company of ''Home Guards:" 

Captain, W. E. Crandall ; first lieutenant, Norman Hamlin ; second 
lieutenant, Hiram Black; first sergeant, Horace AV. Chapman; second, 
W. A. Bryan ; third, Adam C. Glasgow ; first corporal, James H. Shirts ; 
second, John Q. Myers ; third, ; fourth, John Marshall. 

The company numbered in all 101 men, fifty-two of whom were 
from Linn county. As this was the first Union company organized 
north of the Hannibal and St. Joseph Railroad a record of its services 
is worthy of preservation. This company was organized at Brookfield, 
Linn county, Missouri, June 22, 1861, and sworn into the United States 
service by Capt. F. M. C. Loring, under authority of Brig.-Gen. N. 
Lyon, who then commanded the Department of Missouri. General Lyon 
furnished the company with arms and munitions. On the evening of 
the organization Captain Crandall got a dispatch from Maj. Josiah H. 
Hunt, of the Marion Battalion, to march at once to the Chariton river 
bridge of Macon county, distant eighteen miles, and protect it from 
threatened burning by the rebels. In obedience to this order, Lieut. 
N. S. Hamlin was detailed with twenty-five men and proceeded to the 
bridge. An attempt was made to burn the bridge, but the rebels were 
repulsed with a loss of two men killed, no loss being sustained by the 
Federals, and but little damage being done to the bridge. Crandall's 
detachment was then relieved by the Second Iowa, commanded by S. R. 
Curtis. 

The squad marched back to Brookfield and received orders June 
24 from Major Hunt to remain and protect the railroad buildings and 
other property. 

Crandall was relieved on the 28th of June by Company I, of the 
Third Iowa Volunteers, commanded by Captain Trumbull, and his 
(Crandall's company ordered to St. Catharine, in Linn county, to pro- 
tect citizens and guard Yellow creek bridge, remaining in camp at that 
place till the 10th of August following. They were then ordered back 
to Brookfield, in the camp of the Third Iowa Volunteers, commanded 
by Colonel Williams, where they remained until September 8, 1861. 
The company was then ordered to St. Louis by Brigadier-General Polk 



92 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

as an escort to the unarmed regiment of the Twenty-Third Missouri 
Volunteers, commanded by Col. J. T. Tindall, and arrived at Benton 
Barracks September 9, remaining until the 19th, when they were per- 
mitted by General Curtis to return to Brookfield and disband. Orders, 
however, had been received from General Fremont not to muster the 
company out of service, nor to pay them for their service, the refusal 
to pay being based on the technicalities of their being Home Guards, 
and having guarded their homes had gotten value received in that way ; 
and also, that they were not properly mustered into the United States 
service. The company reached Brookfield on the night of the 21st of 
September, 1861, and were disbanded, receiving no clothing, tents, camp 
utensils, equipments, nor any pay for the valuable service they had 
rendered in holding the Hannibal and St. Joseph Railroad for the 
government instead of allowing it to fall into the hands of the Con- 
federates. 

Some time afterwards, however, they were paid by the government, 
when the valuable nature of their services had been ascertained, and 
the legality of their claim established. 

Officers of Company G, Thirty-Eighth Enrolled Missouri Militia 
(enlisted August 8, 1862) : 

Captain, E. J. Crandall ; first lieutenant, John E. Worthley ; second 
lieutenant, Charles C. Davis ; first sergeant, R. Tooey ; second, William 
O'Neal; third, John McCormack; fourth, Warren D. Crandall; first 
corporal, Robert McCormack; second, Alexander Adams; third, James 
King; fourth, Richard Mclntire; fifth, John L. Houck; sixth, R. F. 
Hurd; seventh, Alexander McDonald; eighth, Edward Clark. 

Officers of Company D, Sixty-second Enrolled Missouri Militia: 

Captain, Moses G. Roush; first lieutenant, Richard W. Mitchell; 
second lieutenant, Frederick Degraw ; first sergeant, Eli Lytle ; second, 
Plenry C. Lomax; third, Daniel M. Brinkley; fourth, Thomas C. Max- 
well; first corporal, Amos Whitley; second, William Reid; third, Robin 
M. Johnson; fourth, John Edwards; fifth, Jacob Decker; sixth, John 
Shohoney; seventh, William D. Steele; eighth, Henry C. Eastwood. 

Linn county furnished about 125 men for service in the Confed- 
erate army. The officers of Company A, Third Regiment, Third Divi- 
sion, Missouri State Guards, were as follows: 

Captain, George William Sandusky; first lieutenant, E. H. Rich- 
ardson; second lieutenant, Taylor Singleton; third lieutenant, Henry 
L. Cherry ; first sergeant, L. B. Phillips ; third, Edward Barton ; fourth, 
James Brown; fifth, John Betten; first corporal, John Gooch; second, 
James Laidley ; third, John Barnes ; fourth, John Hosf ord. 



HISTORY OF LINX COUNTY 93 

Company A was mustered into service at Lexington, Missouri, Sep- 
tember 12, 1861. It went immediately into action against the Federal 
forces imder General Mulligan and aided in the capture of the town. 
The term of the company expired January 12, 1861. A majority of 
the members re-enlisted and continued sharing the fortunes of General 
Price's army. 

Dr. P. C. Flournoy was the first captain of Company K, Second 
Missouri Infantry, C. S. A. Was afterwards made colonel of the regi- 
ment, and later became acting brigadier-general in Hood's Tennessee 
campaign. 

George William Sandusky was the second captain of the company. 
He was wounded at Corinth, Mississippi, October 4, 1862. J. J. Phillips 
was first lieutenant. 

Eecord of battles in which Company K was engaged : 

This company was mustered into the Confederate service at Spring- 
field, Missouri, January 16, 1862. April 9, 1865, it surrendered with its 
regiment and division, to the Federals, in Alamaba ; was disbanded and 
sent home. During its term of service it participated in some of the 
hardest fought battles of the war; viz.. Elk Horn (or Pea Ridge), 
Arkansas ; siege of Corinth, Mississippi, May, 1862 ; luka, second battle 
at Corinth, Grand Gulf, Baker's Creek (Champion's Hill), Big Black, 
siege of Vicksburg, where the entire regiment was captured; Resaca, 
Georgia, New Hope Church, Dallas, Kenesaw Mountain, battles in front 
of Atlanta, Altoona Pass, Franklin, Nashville, Fort Blakely, and the 
defense of Mobile (Alabama). At Elk Horn the company went to 
action with forty-nine men, and lost four killed and fifteen wounded. 
At Franklin, Tennessee, the second Missouri Regiment lost 150 men, 
out of 192 engaged. Only four were left in Company K. The Second 
Missouri made a record second to none from this state, in the cause 
of the Sunny South. It 's first colonel was J. Q. Burridge, subsequently 
F. M. Cockrell, and lastly Col. P. C. Flournoy. When the long and 
bloody struggle was over and the cause of the Confederacy went down 
to honorable defeat the brave survivors of the Second Missouri re- 
turned to their homes; and since the war, having surrendered and 
taken the oath of allegiance in good faith, have made as good citizens 
as they had been soldiers. 

The Spanish-American War 

In 1898 it became evident that the friendly relations then existing 
between Spain and the United States must soon terminate. Missouri 



94 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

as a state was deeply interested, and when the news was flashed over 
the wires telling of the disaster that had overtaken the "Maine," her 
patriotic citizens were among the first to demand that the lives of those 
brave men be avenged. 

When at last war was declared and President McKinley issued his 
call for volunteers, Linn count}' was among the first to respond, offering 
the flower of her young manhood in defense of the nation's honor. The 
sectional feeling (if there still remained any) engendered by the great 
Civil War was forgotten, and the sons of the men who had fought under 
the ' ' Stars and Bars ' ' together with those who had carried the ' ' Stars 
and Stripes" vied with each other as to which could be first to wipe 
out with their blood, if necessary, the deadly insult which had been 
hurled at us as a nation. 

In response to the President's call, steps were at once taken to 
recruit a company in Brookfield and Linn county, and the active work 
of enlisting men for the war was soon under way. Many of the best 
young men of the city and county offered themselves to the service, and 
a company of 100 men was soon formed and the following officers 
elected: 

John H. Goldman, captain, Brookfield, Missouri. 

Downey Milbourn, first lieutenant, Linneus, Missouri. 

Henry J. West, second lieutenant, Marceline, Missouri. 

John W. Wrenn, first sergeant, Marceline, Missouri. 

David F. Fawks, quartermaster sergeant, Marceline, Missouri. 

Ephriam P. Banning, sergeant, Brookfield, Missouri. 

Thomas A. Scott, sergeant, Rothville, Missouri. 

William D. Brown, sergeant, Laclede, Missouri. 

Benjamin E. Bowyer, sergeant, Linneus, Missouri. 

Charles W. Wright, corporal, Brookfield, Missouri. 

William T. Lamme, corporal, Laclede, Missouri. 

George P. Fawks, corporal, CarroUton, Missouri. 

William Olinger, corporal, Marceline, Missouri. 

Robert O'Donnell, corporal, Carrolltown, Missouri. 

David S. Bramhall, corporal, Unionville, Missouri. 

Charles E. Crumley, corporal, Marceline, Missouri. 

William Trippler, Jr., corporal, Linneus, Missouri. 

Jasper Knight, corporal, Linneus, Missouri. 

William Hoar, corporal, Brookfield, Missouri. 

Samuel H, King, corporal, Brookfield, Missouri. 

John A. Conners, artificer, Brookfield, Missouri. 

Henry Coleman, wagoner, Hazelhurst, Mississippi. 



HISTORY OF LIXN COUNTY 95 

Guy M. Kerr, musician, Brookfield, Missouri. 

Charles E. Plummer, musician, Milan, Missouri. 

The above list represents the commissioned and non-commissioned 
officers when they were mustered into United States service on July 20, 
1898. In this connection it may be well to note that among the young 
men who were active in recruiting the company was William J. Carlon, 
of Brookfield, who was elected its first lieutenant, but on account of 
defective eyesight was unable to pass the rigid examination imposed 
by the United States government and, much to his regret, was rejected 
from the service. 

The drilling of the company was begun in earnest, and young men 
who, a few days before, were filling the peaceful occupations of farmers, 
clerks, or that of their professions, were answering to the stern com- 
mands of their officers to "fall in, about face, forward march" and 
other military orders. 

This company became Company A of the Sixth Missouri Vol- 
unteer Infantry, which was mustered into the United States service on 
July 20, 1898, at Jefferson Barracks, Missouri, and honorably mustered 
out on May 10, 1899, at Savanna, Georgia. 

When the day arrived for the boys to leave home to scenes of 
activity, Brookfield and the entire county turned out en mass, escorted 
them to the train, and wished them "God speed" and success to their 
arms. 

The company was first sent to Jefferson Barracks, St. Louis, where 
their military education was continued until August 11 and 12 of the 
same year, when they were removed to Camp Cuba Libre, Jackson- 
ville, Florida, arriving there on August 15. The regiment was en- 
camped at Jacksonville until November 7, and during that time suffered 
a loss of two men by death, William S. Busby, of Brookfield, Missouri, 
and August Eamm, of Walnut Hill, Illinois. On the above mentioned 
date the camp was changed to Camp Onward, at Savanna, Georgia, and 
while there death again visited them, its victim being John A. Burns, 
of Brookfield, Missouri. 

During the time the regiment was encamped, prior to their embark- 
ation, many of the boys were taken sick; due largely to the poor sani- 
tary conditions existing and the radical change of climate, a number 
being discharged for disabilities caused from the exposure of camp 
life. 

On December 21, 1898, the long-wished-for order came to embark, 
and the boys began to think that they were going to get a taste of real 
war ; but they were doomed to disappointment, for the haughty manners 



96 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

of Spain had been trailed in the dust, and her navy swept from the high 
seas, before our boys were given a chance to display their valor in a 
single engagement. 

The regiment was taken to Havanna, Cuba, in December of 1898, 
where it was held in reserve until it was proven beyond a question of 
a doubt that their services were not needed. It was then returned to 
the United States and duly mustered out at Savanna, Georgia, on May 
10, 1899, having been in the service a little less than one year. 

A beautiful Soldiers' Monument was unveiled at Brookfield in 
May, 1912. It occupies a commanding position, on a grassy plot in 
North Main street, between two picturesque parks. 

The Brookfield Gazette of May 4 printed this sketch concerning 
the magnificent tribute to the soldier who went to battle for his country : 

**In memory of the days of '61- '65, in honor of the men, living 
and dead, who fought under the folds of the flag of the great Eepublic, 
who periled life and limb that a nation might live, of the men who in 
their young and vigorous manhood toiled through long, weary marches, 
but who now sleep beneath that Mow, green tent whose curtain never 
outward swings,' or march with halting step or bended head to pay 
the last sad rites to a dead comrade or to strew flowers on the graves 
of comrades who have in the years that are past crossed over the river 
of death and pitched their tents on the other side. 

*'In memory of all these, and not forgetful of the gallant men in 
gray whom they met in the shock of battle, the patriotic people of 
Brookfield have builded the durable, beautiful and artistic monument 
that now ornaments the oval between east and west parks, from the 
summit of which the effigy of a volunteer soldier of the Civil War, 
carved in Italian marble, standing at 'parade rest,' looks down upon 
the busy scenes of the main street during the day and keeps watch 
and ward over the sleeping city at night. 

*'It is all a patriotic expression of a patriotic people, some of 
whom were in sympathy with the men who fought under the stars and 
bars, and who, feeling a just pride in the magnificent valor displayed 
by these grand men in gray, are yet glad that owing to the valor and 
sacrifices of the men in blue that this is today one country with one 
united people and under one flag. 

* ' The monument is not only a credit but an ornament to Brookfield, 
and is, we believe, the only monument of the kind in Missouri." 

The movement to erect the monument grew out of a suggestion 
on the part of the local Women's Relief Corps, the ladies' auxiliary 
to the Grand Army of the Republic, to replace the monument to the 




.-^-.;- 



'€^ 



&'' n 




'f-' 



Ajflr*" 






SOLDI KWS' MOM'MKNT AT i;K'( )OKFlELl) 



HISTORY OF LINX COUNTY 97 

unknown dead, erected many years since in Eose Hill cemetery, by a 
more imposing structure. 

In a conference between the local corps and the local Grand Army 
Post, it was suggested that a Soldiers' Monument Association be 
organized, contributions be solicited and a monument to the soldiers of 
the Civil War be built. 

It was seriously doubted if a sufficient amount could be raised, 
but there were a few who expressed the utmost confidence that the 
patriotic people of Brookfield would respond liberally to the call. 

A number of subscriptions were pledged at once. An association 
was organized, and officers and a board of directors were chosen, as 
follows: Henry Tooey, president; George W. Martin, vice-president;, 
Robert W. Davis, secretary, and E. M. Lomax, treasurer. Directors: 
Henry Tooey, Frank Dick, A. W. Baker, Will W. Martin, R. S. Brown- 
lee, R. W. Davis, J. C. Gardner, Mrs. Jennie Tuckerman and Mrs, 
F. P. Lacey. 

E. M. Lomax was afterwards elected president to fill the vacancy 
caused by the death of Henry Tooey. 

A soliciting committee was appointed, headed by the president of 
the association, Henry Tooey, and a sufficient fund was pledged in but 
a brief period to assure the success of the project. In this work the 
energy and zeal of the president of the association, the lamented Henry 
Tooey, always conspicuous in any and every good cause, was never 
more plainly demonstrated. He not only worked untiringly himself, 
but brought out good work on the part of others, and the Soldiers' 
Monument as it stands today between the parks is also a monument 
to the patriotism, zeal and energy of that splendid citizen, Henry Tooey, 
who will long be remembered by the people of Brookfield, not only on 
account of his zeal or his energy in work for the best interests of 
Brookfield, but on account of a warm heart that promptly responded 
to the call of distress on the part of any and every human being. 

The monument is of Barre granite, the figure of the soldier of 
Italian marble, the base nine feet four inches by nine feet four inches, 
artistically tapering to the summit, and, with the figure of the soldier^ 
is twenty-two feet six inches in height. The cost, not including the 
foundation which was put in by the city at an expense of $105, was 
$1,620. 

D. L. Williams, the Linneus monument dealer, was the local con- 
tractor and A. Eraser & Co., of Mansfield, Ohio, the builders. It is 
constructed in strict compliance in every respect, in material, in work- 



98 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

manship, in artistic design, with the contract. The board of directors 
were unanimous in their approval. 

Stewart Marsh, with his trained force, moved the massive blocks 
from the freight house to the park and set up the monument. It was 
his first experience in handling such heavy weights, but he went to 
work like a veteran, without hesitation and without doubt, and did 
the work as well as though he had been setting up towering monuments 
all his life. 

Brookfield has a monument of which our people may well be proud, 
and in one hundred years from now, unless removed by the hand of 
man, it will be standing where it stands now, as artistic and as complete 
as it is today. 



CHAPTER IX 

Railroads of Linn County — The First Campaign Inspired by Exorbi- 
tant Steamboat Rates — Railroad Convention at Chillicothe in 1847 
— Linn County's Delegates — First Great Disaster on Hannibal S 
St. Joe Road — The Bushwhacker — General Grant as a Protector 
of the Road — W. C. Brown — *S'. E. Crance — J. W. Mulhern — Tom 
Beeler, Pioneer Operator — P. H. Houlahan — Z. N. Wilber on War- 
Tinie Railroading — Hoiv the Engines Were Named — The Burling- 
ton & Southwesteru — John McCartney — Thirty Years an Engineer 
— When Thayer was the Division Toivn — Bishop Hogan — George 
H. Davis — The Pony Express — First Officials of the "Joe" — First 
Run of the "Eli" — Marceline and the Santa Fe — First Double 
Track in Missouri — General Notes. 

In its issue of November 6, 1846, the St. Joseph Gazette sounded 
the note that announced the dawn of the railroad era in northern 
Missouri : 

"Our country is destined to suffer much, and is now suffering, 
from the difficulty of navigation and the extremely high rates the boats 
now charge. Our farmers may calculate that they will get much less 
for produce and will be compelled to pay much more for their goods 
than heretofore, and this will certainly always be the case when the 
Missouri river shall be as low as it now is. The chances are fearfully 
against having any considerable work bestowed in improving the river, 
and until it is improved b)^ artificial means the navigation of it to 
this point must always be dangerous and very uncertain. 

"We suggest the propriety of a railroad from St. Joseph to some 
point on the Mississippi — either St. Louis, Hannibal or Quiucy. For 
ourselves, we like the idea of a railroad to one of the latter places 
suggested, for this course would place us nearer to the eastern cities 
and would make our road thither a direct one; we like this road, too, 
because it would so much relieve the intermediate country, which is 
now suffering and must always suffer so much for transjDortatiou 
facilities in the absence of such an enterprise." 

The writer of the above was a prophet. The agitation thus beg-un 

99 



100 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

bore early fruit. Prominent men were interested all the way across 
the state, and "An Act to Incorporate the Hannibal & St. Joseph 
Railroad Company" was passed by the General Assembly and 
approved by the governor February 16, 1847. The stockholders named 
were: Joseph Robidonx, John Corby and Robert J. Boyd, of St. Jo- 
seph; Samuel J. Harrison, Zachariah G. Draper and Erasmus M. 
Moffet, of Hannibal; Alexander McMurty, Shelby county; George A. 
Shortridge and Thomas Sharp, Macon county; Westley Halliburton, 
Linn county ; John Graves, Livingston county ; Robert Wilson, Daviess 
county, and George W. Smith, Caldwell county. 

The capital stock was $2,000,000, divided into 20,000 shares of 
$100 each. 

A railroad convention was held at Chillicothe on June 2, 1847, 
attended by delegates from all the counties through which the Hannibal 
& St. Joseph road was to pass. The delegates from Linn country were 
"W. B. Woodruff, Joseph C. Moore, James Lintell, John J. Flora, Jere- 
miah Phillips and W. Halliburton. 

The main subject for discussion was the procurement of means to 
build the road. A committee consisting of one member from each 
county was appointed to draft a plan. W. B. Woodruff was the com- 
mitteeman from Linn county. 

The committee reported the following method for finding the 
wherewithal : 

''1. A liberal subscription by the citizens of the state to the capital 
stock of said company. 

"2. That congress be petitioned for a grant of alternate sections 
of all vacant land ten miles on each side of said road, when located. 

*'3. That the company procure a subscription to the stock by 
eastern capitalists, and, should the foregoing means prove inadequate, 
we recommend that the legislature pass an act authorizing the company 
to issue bonds, to be indorsed by the governor or secretary of state 
for the residue; the company to give a mortgage on the whole work 
to the state for the liquidation of the bonds." 

When the convention reassembled the next day Judge King, of 
Ray county, offered the following resolution, which was unanimously 
adopted : 

"That whereas this convention has adopted a resolution author- 
izing a memorial to congress for donation of alternate sections of land 
to aid in the construction of the contemplated railroad, also authorizing 
a memorial to the legislature for such aid in the undertaking as can 
be afforded consistently with the rights of other portions of the state; 



HISTOEY OF LIN^T COUNTY 101 

therefore, we, the delegates, pledge ourselves to support no man for 
congress who will not pledge himself to the support of the proposition 
aforesaid, nor will we support any man for governor, lieutenant- 
governor or member of the legislature who will not pledge himself 
to give such aid in the construction of the said railroad as may be 
consistent with the rights of other portions of the state as contemplated 
by the resolution aforesaid. ' ' 

It appears the convention was not very sanguine of an early opera- 
tion of the railroad, as the following resolution relative to a stage 
route, offered by Mr. Sharp of Macon, was adopted: 

"Whereas, It is not only extremely important to the agricultural 
and commercial interests of the immediate country that a good wagon 
road be opened from St. Joseph to Hannibal, but the United States 
mail stages cannot be put in motion on said route until said road shall 
be opened; and 

"Whereas, It is of the utmost importance, as well to the whole 
intermediate country as to the two extremes, that mail facilities be 
speedily obtained in stages through said country; therefore 

''Resolved hij the Convention, That it be recommended to each 
county through which said road may pass, immediately to open, bridge, 
and put in good repair the said road, in order that mail stages may be 
immediately started, according to the act of congress establishing said 

route. ' ' 

An amendment to the section relative to the grant from congress, 
offered by Mr. Tarr, was adopted, as follows : 

"Also to petition congress that, should any of the alternate sec- 
tions on the road, or within six miles on either side thereof, be sold at 
any time subsequent to the sixteenth day of February, 1847, and before 
the action of congress in relation to these lands, other lands be granted 
as nearly contiguous as possible in lieu thereof." 

Committees were appointed to address the people of northern Mis- 
souri in the interest of the project. 

There was an energetic campaign in all the counties, and, looking 
at it from this era, it seems strange that opposition was encountered 
on the ground that a railroad through this country would be unwise 
and impractical. It is stated that a certain member of the legislature 
took the stump against the railroad because it would be an inducement 
for negro slaves to desert. Others asserted that it would be impossible 
to make a roadbed that would stand in rainy weather; that ox and 
mule teams were the surer power, and there was no danger of them 
blowing up and killing lots of people. Many of the residents in the 



103 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

sections campaigned had never seen a railroad train and could not 
understand the utility of such a method. What the country needed, 
they said, was good highways for stages and freight wagons to the 
river, where the boats would take care of the traffic. 

The first aid given to the Hannibal & St. Joe Railroad, by Linn 
county, as far as the record shows, was a donation of $200 by the 
coimty court, December 17, 1849. This was used towards defraying 
surveying expenses. A further donation of $500 to the road was 
made by the Linn county court in the spring of 1851. Later, stock to 
the amount of $25,000 was subscribed. At that period the purpose was 
for the road to run by way of Bloomington in Macon county and 
Linneus in Linn county. 

The Linn county court ordered that A. W. Flournoy be appointed 
as agent for Linn county to confer with the board of directors of the 
Hannibal & St. Joseph Railroad Company concerning the location of 
the road, and should the location be made through Linneus, then Flour- 
noy was authorized to renew the subscription of $25,000 heretofore 
made to the road, and to subscribe $30,000 additional, to be paid to 
the railroad company from the proceeds of the sale of swamp and 
overflowed lands in Linn county; in the event that the location was 
not made through Linneus, the board of directors of the road were to 
be notified of the withdrawal of the entire amount subscribed. 

The railroad made application to the county court for right-of- 
way through Linn county November 5, 1855. This application was 
granted by the court. 

At 7 o'clock on the morning of February 13, 1859, the Hannibal 
& St. Joseph road was completed, and an unbroken line of steel ex- 
tended from the Mississippi river to the Missouri river. The final 
connection was made near Chillicothe. The road is now a main line 
of the Burlington System, but old-timers refuse to recognize it by any 
other name than the ''Hannibal & St. Joe." 

It is strongly suspected that a certain well-known pioneer Mis- 
sourian, whom ''Mark Twain" weighted with the unstable but always 
optimistic character of "Col. Sellers," was the real originator of the 
scheme to build a line from the Mississippi river to the Missouri river. 
Some of the patriarchal inhabitants solemnly assert that Bob Stewart 
and his associates followed precisely the ox-plow furrow "Col. Sellers" 
made across the state to show where the road ought to run, and that 
the test applied by the surveyors and engineers showed that no better 
'^locating survey" could have been made. They speak of it as "the 



HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 103 

ox-team survey," not in irony, but as a method of superior utility to 
the cumbersome and expensive one now in use. 

In the first year or two of its existence the Hannibal & St. Joe 
made enough history to fill a big book. The war came on and devel- 
oped that wild character that became so widely known and dreaded — 
the '^bushwhacker." He looked at the railroad as his legitimate prey, 
and it was rare that a train journeyed across the state without carry- 
ing into the terminal marks of his attention. His work was especially 
in evidence at the big bridges. The first and worst disaster that ever 
occurred on the line was caused by bushwhackers in the year 1861. 
W. C. Brown, who later became president of the New York Central 
Lines, not long ago, sent to his friend, Judge Spencer, general attorney 
for the Missouri lines of the Burlington, a copy of the Neiv York 
Herald of September 7, 1861, containing an account of the bushwhack- 
ers' murderous work at Platte river bridge, near St. Joseph. From 
1890 to 1896 Mr. Brown was general manager of the Hannibal & St. 
Joe and the Kansas City, St. Joe & Council Bluffs lines. He began 
as a tie chopper, worked up to section foreman, operator, train dis- 
patcher, trainmaster, superintendent and manager. 

The Netv York Herald's story of the greatest wreck on the Hanni- 
bal & St. Joe road was as follows : 

"Terrible Eoad Catastrophe — Diabolical Outrage on the Hannibal 
& St. Joseph Eailroad — Seventeen Lives Lost and a Large Number 
Wounded," etc. It recites, through correspondence with St. Louis 
papers, the wrecking of a passenger train, bound west, September 3. 
The timber of the Little Platte river bridge, nine miles east of St. 
Joseph, had been burned nearly through, and the entire train went 
down. Bushwhackers are blamed for the outrage. 

"Abe Hager, baggagemaster of the railroad, furnished a graphic 
story of the wreck. The passenger cars were completely smashed, and 
he was the only one to escape unhurt. He came to St. Joe, got an 
engine, physicians and necessities for the wounded, hurrjang back to 
the scene of the wreck. He is quoted as saying : ' The greatest excite- 
ment prevails in St. Joseph in regard to this inhuman outrage.' 

"An additional account says that the train carried from eighty- 
five to one hundred passengers. The fire had been extinguished before 
entirely destroying the bridge, which was a substantial work of 100-foot 
span, leaving it a mere shell. But three persons — J. W. Parker, super- 
intendent of the United States Express, and Mail Agents Mars and 



IM HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

Hager — were able to afford assistance, the others who were not killed 
outright being so disabled as to be helpless. 

"Hager walked five miles out of the way back to St. Joseph, 
making the remainder of the trip on a hand car. He found a heavy 
oak tie bound across the track two hundred yards from the bridge, 
and two miles further on he found the trestlework over a small stream 
was on fire. 

"Though the wreck occurred on September 3, and the story waa 
printed four days later, there is no list of killed or injured. The 
names of several victims are given, but there seems to have been great 
difficulty in getting the details of the wreck." 

Mr. Brown found this old copy of the Herald while tearing down 
an old building that was in the way of some improvements being made 
for the Central's offices in New York. 

In his letter accompanying the article he sent to Judge Spencer, 
Mr. Brown wrote: 

"As this little incident was undoubtedly participated in by a num- 
ber of your cousins from Taos, I know you will be interested in it, 
and you may perhaps value it as a souvenir. 

"How do you like a Republican governor after thirty-five years? 

"W. C. B." 

Judge Spencer did not rest long under the imputation concerning 
his "cousins from Taos," but instantly grabbed his pen and said this: 

"My dear Brown: I have yours inclosing paper containing ac- 
count of 'diabolical outrage,' etc. I have always supposed the train 
was believed to be loaded with soldiers. As far as I have been able 
to ascertain the facts, it would seem that 'my cousins,' in their unlaw- 
ful acts, were trying to retaliate on you and your co'usins for stealing 
our negroes and running them into Canada. 

"Always yours, 

"0. M. Spencek." 

George H. Davis, who has been referred to, had a relief train at 
the wreck in a short time. In telling of the event, he said : 

"It was the first and greatest wreck on the Hannibal & St. Joe 
road. The bridge was a Howe truss. The supports were sawed at 
one end by the bushwhackers. There were five coaches in the train, 
and all well filled. Everything went into the river but one car. Six- 
teen people, including the engineer, conductor and one of the brake- 





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HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 105 

men, were killed outright. Sixty passengers were injured. The wreck 
was cruelly complete. 

''I organized a relief crew at St. Joseph and we hurried to the 
scene, which was only nine miles down the road. The outlaws — many 
of them — were coolly standing around when we arrived. Some of them 
told me they intended to get me the next time. There were only a few 
soldiers on the train, and to destroy them the bushwhackers had reck- 
lessly proceeded against a trainload of noncombatants. Their object 
was to stop the transportation of soldiers over the line, but their work 
resulted in the government building blockhouses at all the big bridges 
and garrisoning them with a strong body of soldiers. ' ' 

Several times following attempts were made to burn bridges, but 
the bushwhackers were driven off with loss. General Grant was sta- 
tioned at the Salt river bridge in the early days of the war, and he 
made many friends among the people in the vicinity. Even the strong- 
est Southern sympathizers learned to love the plain, quiet soldier when 
they became acquainted with him. It was while in this service that 
General Grant, then Colonel Grant, set out to give battle to Colonel 
Harris and Ms somewhat noted body of Confederate rangers. But 
at the place where they expected the fight there was no opposing sol- 
diery. Colonel Harris had quietly moved away. General Grant after- 
ward said he there learned a great military fact — that the enemy might 
be as much afraid of him as he was of the enemy. 

Mr. Brown is not the only man the Hannibal and St. Joe has 
schooled for larger duties. Something like twenty-six years ago the 
Hannibal & St. Joseph lost its old identity by being absorbed by the 
Chicago, Burlington & Quincy, and afterwards becoming a part of the 
great Burlington Route. The "old guard" had to go, and with them 
came the resignation of W. R. Woodard, the picturesque superintend- 
ent, as well as J. H. Barnard, at that time general manager. The 
result was that W. F. Merreli became the new general manager, and 
S. E. Crance superintendent of the Hannibal & St. Joseph, now, prop- 
erly speaking, the Brookfield division of the Burlington System. Mr. 
Crance came to Hannibal from Illinois, where he had been railroading 
from way back in the days when he was a brakeman. But he decided 
that the superintendent of the road should be located at Brookfield 
instead of Hannibal, and in 1885 the office of superintendent was moved 
to Brookfield, where it has since been. The coming of Crance brought 
a lot of followers, and for a few years they continued to come from 
Aurora, from the famous Fox river division ; from Galesburg and from 
the St. Louis line of the C, B. & Q. For about six years Superintendent 



106 HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 

Crance resided in Brookfield and then was promoted to general super- 
intendent of tlie entire Missouri lines, with headquarters at St. Joseph. 
Naturally, when coming to Brookfield, Mr. Crance wanted his own train- 
master, and it was twenty-five years ago one pleasant Sunday after- 
noon that a stately young looking man with rather classic features, 
stepped off the train pulling in from the east. 

That was P. H. Houlahan, who had grown up in railroading over 
on the ''Q" and through the solicitation of Sam Crance was induced 
to leave the Cotton Belt, where he was trainmaster, and come to Brook- 
field. In a short time Mr. Houlahan was promoted to assistant superin- 
tendent, and when Mr. Crance went to St. Joseph some years later, Mr. 
Houlahan was made superintendent, and filled the position successfully 
until 1902, when he resigned to accept general superintendency of the 
Clover Leaf. 

On June 1, Colonel Crance resigned as general superintendent upon 
his own volition, wishing to spend his declining days, after a railway 
career of forty years, in ease and comfort, which with a competency he 
was able to do until he died. He acted in an advisory capacity the re- 
mainder of that year, after which he returned to Brookfield, on account 
of kindred ties, and being interested financially here. He died here 
some six years ago and was buried at Aurora. But his memory lives. 

A man who entered into the early history of the Hannibal & St. 
Joseph is T. S. Beeler. Tom Beeler was a pioneer operator and after- 
ward dispatcher. Everybody liked Beeler. He knew his business and 
was here when Brookfield had less than one thousand people. He was 
here during several administrations, those of Towne, Mead, Woodard 
and Crance, leaving several years ago. During liis citizenship in Brook- 
field, Mr. Beeler had been dispatcher, chief dispatcher and trainmaster, 
and was succeeded in the latter position by J. W. Mulhern, who came 
to Brookfield twenty years ago or more. The public liked Mulhern. 
He was always affable and courteous. 

As trainmaster he gave satisfaction, judging by the fourteen years 
he filled the position here at Brookfield. Mr. Mulhern is now general 
superintendent on the Rio Grande Western. 

Since the Crance and Houlahan regimes on the Brookfield division 
there have been several superintendents, to-wit: F. H. Ustick, now 
general superintendent of the Missouri lines ; J. E. Votaw, W. F. Tliie- 
hoff, S. H. Shults, J. Eussell, E. P. Bracken, W. C. Welch, while W. A. 
Chittenden is the present superintendent, and R. F. Ledford assistant 
superintendent. 

A potent factor in the operation of the Brookfield division of the 



HISTORY OF LINX COUNTY 107 

Burlington for many years past has been R. H. Allen, chief dispatcher, 

succeeding H. W. Hamm in the latter position eight years ago. Mr! 

Allen has been with the Burlington as operator, dispatcher and chief, 

since 1879, and has been here at Brookfield since 1884. It is Mr. Allen 

who ''gets behind the gun" in the operation of the Brookfield division. 

P. H. Houlahan, who began at the very bottom of railroading and 

became division superintendent of the line, later held the responsible 

position of manager of the Chicago & Alton, and Clover Leaf, with 

headquarters at Chicago. Mr. Houlahan gave to the road one of the 

most vitalizing influences— the application of the personal element of 

responsibility for the safety of trains. He taught his men that they 

themselves were the main reliance ; after them came the safety devices, 

the signals, the automatic brake, the safety switch and all that.' Howard 

Elliott, who became president of the Northern Pacific, was another man 

who left the impress of his work on the ''Joe." 

I. N. Wilber, now retired and residing at Brookfield, was in the 
service of the Hannibal & St. Joseph road fifty years. He was born in 
Duchess county. New York, February 24, 1836. He came to Missouri 
December 1, 1857, and began in the service of the road as tie chopper 
at a point near St. Joseph. He proceeded by successive stages from the 
chopper to carpenter, night watchman, brakeman, conductor, fireman, 
engineer, machinist, round house foreman, general foreman, division 
master mechanic, and, finally, master mechanic of the large electrical 
shops of the road at Hannibal. Mr. Wilber resigned January 1, 1908, 
at the completion of his half century of service. On the occasion of his 
retirement the officials of the road paid Mr. Wilber this complimentary 
recognition of his long and efficient service. 

"The Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railroad receives with regret 
the resignation of I. N. Wilber and takes this method of expressing its 
appreciation of his loyal and devoted service through an unbroken 
period of fifty years, and its sincere hope for his continued happiness 
and prosperity." 

Here are some of the curious and interesting phases of early day 
railroading as described by Mr. AVilber : 

"When I came to Missouri in 1857 the terminus of the Hannibal 
& St. Joseph road was fifty miles west of the Mississippi river, at the 
village of Clarence, so I had to go the balance of the way to St. Josepli 
in a stage coach. My first work was on the construction of depots, 
tracks, etc., until connection was made two miles east of Chillicothe. 
February 13, 1859. I was then promoted to the position of brakeman! 
"The First Locomotive— In the early days the locomotives were 



108 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

named instead of numbered, and were as well known as the cities and 
prominent people of that day. The residents along the line would 
select some particular engine as their favorite and they would discuss 
the capabilities of that engine in comparison with some other engine in 
the same way we used to talk about one steamboat being able to beat 
another. The following is a list of the locomotives identified with the 
early history of the road and the development of Missouri : Missouri, 
Albany, R. M. Stewart (named after the first president of the road), 
Hannibal, St. Joseph, Governor Polk, Marion, Shelby, Macon, Linn, 
Livingston, Caldwell and Buchanan, Having run short of great men, 
they named the latter seven engines after the counties through which 
the road operated. Fifteen more engines were purchased in 1859 and 
these were named after noted Indian tribes of the West, i. e., Cherokee, 
Chippewa, Mohegan, Ottawa, Chickasaw, Oneida, Comanche, Seneca, 
Miami, Appache, Omaha, Ontario, etc. Later six more locomotives 
were added to the rolling stock and these were named in honor of the 
territories of Idaho, Oregon, Colorado, Nevada, Montana and Utah. 
They were all wood burners with 16-inch cylinders. 

'^ Governor Polk changed to General Lyon — Soon after the battle 
of Wilson's Creek, in August, 1861, the Governor Polk was changed to 
the General Lyon, as a tribute to the dead hero, and as a rebuke to 
Governor Polk for his position on the slavery question. The manage- 
ment of the road was strongly in sympathy with the Federal 
government. 

"A War-Time Engineer — In 1863 I was given my first engine to 
run, and continued as an engineman during the balance of the war. 
Those were trying times for railroad men in Missouri. Many of the 
locomotives had cabs constructed of boiler steel to protect the enginemen 
from the bullets of the ubiquitous bushwhackers. 

"Block Houses — In 1864 block houses were erected at Salt River, 
Chariton and North River to protect the Howe Truss bridges, or rather, 
the block houses protected the soldiers who were protecting the bridges 
against the torch of the bushwhacker. These houses, I believe, were 
built by the government, as the Hannibal and St. Joseph was the line 
that carried the mail and government supplies and every effort was 
made to keep it open for traffic. 

"Colonel U. S. Grant at Salt River — I was pulling a west-bound 
passenger train in the summer of 1861 and on reaching Salt River in 
Shelby county, we found that a gang of bushwliackers had burned the 
bridge. There, for the first time, I saw U. S. Grant and his regiment 
transferring their wagons and munitions of war across the river. Little 



HISTORY OF LINN" COUNTY 109 

did we think that in a few years that plain soldier who was there quietly 
directing those ordinary tasks would become the greatest military chief 
in the land. 

"Soldier and Engineer — During the war we railroad boys per- 
formed double service. When we came in off the road at the end of our 
trip we were placed on guard duty, or drilled by Captain Loomis, our 
assistant superintendent. Our work as soldiers consisted largely in 
guarding the company's property. The only active service we had was 
when we were sent out to Shrinkey to capture Tom Harris and his band, 
who were terrorizing the community, but after being locked up in the 
old seminary at Monroe for two days, and coming very near being cap- 
tured ourselves by the redoubtable Tom we got back to work, and I 
decided that I would be a more brilliant success as a railroad man than 
as a soldier. 

''Early Day Wages — I was paid for my work from 1857 to 1865 
as follows: One dollar a day for chopping ties, $1.25 as brakeman, 
$1.50 as fireman, and $2.50 as engineer. 

''Coal Ticket as a Train Order — In the early 60 's we were on a 
west-bound train and had an order to meet an east-bound train at 
Bevier, at midnight. Bevier was then, as it is now, the great coal min- 
ing town of the state. On arriving there we found that the other train 
had not yet reached there. It was a beautiful summer night and my 
fireman and I got out on top of the cab and laid down to take a nap in 
the moonlight. It appeared the conductor and brakeman were also 
taking a snooze on top of the way-car or caboose. At day break the 
conductor woke up and aroused us. When we all got stretched out and 
thoroughly awake we decided to proceed, but one thing bothered us — 
had that train gone through? If it had, not a one of us heard it. Bevier 
was not a telegraph office then. Some future great railroad man sug- 
gested that we walk over to the coal shed and make a search through the 
coal tickets, and if we found on file there a coal ticket with a number of 
the engine we had orders to meet we would know that the train had 
passed us in the night. Sure enough we found the ticket there and it 
was ample evidence to warrant us in proceeding. We reached the divi- 
sion at Brookfield four hours late. No questions were asked us and we 
had no statements to give out. I don't suppose the superintendent or 
the dispatcher ever discovered our little dereliction, if such you might 
call it, for every fellow worked out his own individual salvation in those 
days the best he could, and felt his personal responsibility in getting 
the train over the road safely." 

The Burlington & Southwestern was the name of a road started 



110 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

January 22, 1868. Two companies were organized to build a railroad 
from Linneus to Stanley, a point on the Brunswick and Chillicotlie road, 
then under construction. The companies referred to were known as 
the Central Railroad and the North Missouri Central road. The plan 
of the former was to build from Laclede south to a junction with the 
Brunswick road; tlie latter was to run from Linneus to Laclede. 

The Missouri Central was organized first. The promoters in seeking 
aid had promised to build to Linneus, but insisted upon using all the 
subscription to be paid on that part of the road extending south of 
Laclede. To this the people of Linneus objected. They very naturally 
demanded that the work should commence at their town, and used south 
of it, or at Laclede and used in building the line north. Laclede would 
not consent to this and so the North Missouri Central Company was 
organized. This company entered into a contract to commence at 
Linneus and to prepare the road-bed for the iron to Laclede, and the 
Missouri Central was to build south of Laclede to the junction with the 
Brunswick road. When eacli company had performed its part of the 
contract they were to be consolidated in one company. The two com- 
panies went to work and expended all the money they had, and then 
work was suspended over the entire line. A new contract was made 
June 9, 1868, but nothing much was done in the way of construction 
until 1871. B. F. Northcott, president of the North Missouri Central 
Company, made an effort to revive the work. Negotiations were opened 
with another road and the North Missouri Central became a branch of 
the St. Joseph & Iowa Railroad, with headquarters at St. Joseph. The 
purpose was to get a northern outlet to reach Burlington and Chicago, 
and if possible to get some strong northern company to take hold and 
equip the road. To this end the managers devoted their efforts to con- 
struct the road-bed. 

The contract which eventually resulted in the establishment of the 
road which is now operating north and south through Linn county was 
as follows: 

Office of the St. Joseph & Iowa Railroad Company. 

St. Joseph, Missouri, April 12, 1871. 
At a regular meeting of the Executive Committee appointed by the 
Board of Directors of said company, and authorized to act in these 
premises, this day held, there were present John Severance, William M. 
Albin, James A. Matney and Jefferson Chandler, constituting a quorum 
of said committee. The following action was had : 



HISTORY OF LIiYN COUNTY 111 

''Whereas, The St. Joseph & Iowa company have undertaken the 
construction of a branch railroad, under the name of the Central North 
Missouri branch of the St. Joseph and Iowa railroad, therefore, 

'' Resolved, That B. F. Northcott, Joseph Combs and Marion Cave 
are hereby authorized to act as agents to receive the donations, and for 
the procuring and receiving of subscriptions to stock to aid in construc- 
tion, and to act for said branch until the subscribers to stock in the same 
shall otherwise instruct, and the form herein underwritten shall be 
sufficient subscription to such stock, and shall be binding on such com- 
pany when ratified by said company. We, the undersigned, agree to 
take the number of shares of capital stock set opposite our names, 
respectively, in the name of the Central North Missouri branch of the 
St. Joseph & Iowa Railroad, for the purpose of aiding in the construc- 
tion of said branch, and promise to pay to the St. Joseph & Iowa rail- 
road company $100 for each of said shares. Said money to be applied 
to the construction of said branch, and to be for its exclusive use and 
benefit. ' ' 

When the above mentioned agents were appointed the St. Joseph & 
Iowa Railroad did not own a seal, so Mr. Northcott had one made and 
presented it to the company. Its chief use was in stamping the above 
contract. The arrangement with the St. Joseph and Iowa Railroad 
resulted in a change of the plans by the Missouri Central Company. 
Tliis company decided to follow the example of the Central North 
Missouri branch and to cast its fortunes with the St. Louis & Iowa 
Company. On May 31, 1871, it deeded all its rights, privileges and 
franchises to the Central branch of -the St. Joseph and Iowa Railroad, 
with stipulations for the completion of the road south of Laclede. 

Sullivan and Putnam counties subscribed liberally for stock to aid 
in building the road, but finally the St. Joseph & Iowa people turned 
over the matter to a company known as the Burlington and South- 
western, which road was eventually constructed from Burlington, Iowa, 
to Carrollton, Missouri, and is now in successful operation as an artery 
of the Burlington system. 

John McCartney, former councilman and mayor of Brookfield, be- 
longs to the class of early-day engineers on the Hannibal and St. Joe 
road. Born in New York state August 15, 1833, his long years hang- 
lightly upon his well-knit frame, and he talks most enthusiastically of 
that happy-go-lucky period when the infant railroad was struggling to 
live. It was a struggle, a real one. Added to the dangers of soft road- 
bed, and often-times inexperienced crews, was the ever-present pros- 
pect of bushwhackers tearing up the track, burning the bridge or shoot- 



113 HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 

ing into the train. The engine cab was the target for many of these 
cowardly attacks, which became so frequent the sides were finally lined 
with sheet iron. 

Mr. McCartney came to Missouri in March, 1859, directly after the 
road was completed, and entered its service as a fireman. Soon after- 
wards he was promoted to the right hand side of the engine, holding 
successfully the position of engineer for 30 years. As a man who is 
well equipped to give a good idea of pioneer railroading, Mr. McCart- 
ney was asked to describe for this history, life's joys and sorrows as 
seen from the engineer's chair of observation. Mr. McCartney said: 

"In the early sixties the engines on the Hannibal and St. Joseph 
Eailroad burned wood and had copper flues. These copper flues were 
all right for wood, but we had a world of trouble with them when they 
began to use coal. The sparks were more solid than woodfire sparks, 
and they would cut through the flues, causing the steam to blow out like 
the blow-off from the safety valve. Often-times the flue would burst 
with a loud noise. 

' * The engineers of those days were taught how to repair the break, 
while out on the run, if the accident was not too serious. We carried 
iron plugs to drive in the hole. When a flue sprung a leak we had to 
disconnect the plunger from the cross-head — from the pump — and 
pump her up by hand. To stop the leak the fire would be drawn out of 
the firebox, and the engineer would crawl in and hunt around for the 
hole, or else work from the front end, wherever it might be. Sometimes 
it was necessary to work the pumps to locate the leak. When the hole 
was found the plug would be driven in, and the plunger worked by hand 
to fill the boiler. Of course the engine was hot, and the fixing of a plug 
was a pretty delicate job. When the engine got in the shops the copper 
flue was withdrawn and an iron one substituted. It was not long before 
all the engines were equiped with iron flues. 

"The pumps in the old time engine were coupled to the cross-head 
and only run when the engine did. It was always necessary to put the 
engine in motion to get a supply of water in the boiler. We could tell 
how the water in the boiler was by the water cocks. There were no 
water gauges on locomotives then. 

"When an engine was sent into the shop for repairs the engineer 
would look after the job himself. He had to be a good deal of a machin- 
ist to keep things in order and to make the frequent repairs necessary. 

"The first engines on the 'Joe' were named after the counties 
along the line, and then after certain Indian tribes. The states and 
territories were also used, and the names of the governors. The 'Pony 



HISTORY OF LINX COUXTT 113 

Express' engine was named after Missouri. One of the engines was 
called 'R. M. Stewart,' after the original promoter of the road. 

"In the early days there were no regular switch engines at Brook- 
field. Each engineer had to make up his own train, unless it was 
already made up at St. Joe or Hannibal. They had switch engines at 
those terminals. The first roundhouse was built at Brookfield in 1859. 
When I first went to work we laid over between Bucklin and St. 
Catherine. (Thayer, now a cornfield.) That was the division point. 
There was a turntable and a little straight engine house that would 
hold two or three engines and a blacksmith shop. That was about all 
they had there. 

"Among the early-day engineers that I recall are Add Clark, who 
pulled the 'Pony Express,' I. N. Wilber, who rose to master 
mechanic, and retired after fifty years' service; George P. Chapin, 
John McGowan, Tom Davis and Frank Bullard. 

"There were wood yards all along the line. The men in charge 
were called 'fuel agents.' The men who sawed and supplied the wood 
for locomotives were given tickets by the engineers, and the company 
cashed these tickets. In some places the company had its own fuel 
depots, which were supplied by men in its employ. 

"I began on the road as engineer in September, 1863. Before 
that I had been firing. I kept at work as engineer until 1888, the year 
of the big strike, when I went to Nebraska to take charge of the Kansas 
City and Omaha shops at Fairfield. My title was division master 
mechanic. The road mentioned was a part of the Union Pacific. 

"In 1864, while running as engineer on the east end, we were 
flagged east of Clarence. A passenger train was behind us and we 
were trying to make Shelbina ahead of the passenger. Shelbina was 
then a meeting point for our train and the west-bound passenger. We 
were told that Shelbina was on fire ; that the place had been raided by 
bushwhackers, who were raising the mischief. We backed our train 
to Macon, and the passenger, which was behind us, also stayed at 
Macon all night. 

"Next day we went through Shelbina. The bushwhackers had 
burned the depot and freight house and had torn things up generally. 
The people were very much excited. 

"The bridge over Salt river and the water tank there were also 
burned. 

"During the war our road was used largely for the transportation 
of troops and military supplies, and the bushwhackers were constantly 
making trouble. When a train was started out only the good Lord 



114 HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 

knew whether any of the crew would get in alive. There were block 
houses at Chariton, Grand and Platte rivers on the west, and one at 
Salt River and on the Quincy branch to the east. These were garri- 
soned by federal soldiers and some of them bore evidences of battle. 
I believe all these old block houses have now been torn down or 
destroyed. 

"It was very difficult to get good men to run engines during the 
war. The men in the cab were so constantly exposed to bullets that 
the cabs were lined with sheet iron. At the beginning of the .war engi- 
neers were paid $2.25 a day and firemen $1.25 a day. These wages 
had to be constantly raised to get good men to stay with the job. 
Finally they got down to a mileage basis. Freight engineers were 
paid 4 cents a mile and passenger engineers Si/o cents a mile. Those 
were regarded as tip top prices for those days. 

"I was firing on the west end the day of the 'Pony Express' run. 
We were hauling a local freight east, and when we reached Chillicothe 
we were held there an hour, so cautious were they not to let any train 
get on the main line too close to the fast express. It never stopped 
at Chillicothe at all, but whizzed by same as if that thriving city was 
merely a cross-roads. The only stops made by the 'Pony Express' 
train that day were to take on wood or water. Fuel agents were noti- 
fied long ahead of time, so they could make ready to load the tender 
in an instant. There were two brakemen to the one car. In the car 
was the overland mail, which was to be carried to the far west from 
St. Joseph on W. H. Russell's ponies. The head officers of the road 
were also in the car. From the way that little mail car rocked over the 
light 'chair back' rails as it sailed by us I imagined they were getting 
their money's worth of real thrills. Add Clark was at the lever. He 
was the King of Engineers at that time, and he got the little train 
across those wobbly rails and soft roadbed in a good deal less time 
than the best train on the road is making today. Of course with the 
modern engine and train they could beat the 'Pony Express' time if 
they wanted to, but it is rare nowadays that railroad officers will 
inaugurate any such spectacular enterprises, except when wealthy men 
like 'Scotty' are willing to pay just to see what can be done in the way 
of running. 

"The 'Pony Express' engineer had orders to run against time 
and make a record. He did it, and he did it without mishap. The 
safety with which Clark got his sawed-off train through is as much to 
his credit as the rapid time he made. The first consideration with a 
good engineer is always the safety of his train. Then comes speed. 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 115 

Clark was not only a brave engineer, but he was a cautious one. As 
I recollect now he covered the 206 miles between the Mississippi and 
Missouri rivers in close to four hours, or about fifty miles an hour. 
That was some running over the sort of a roadbed we had then. ' ' 

Mrs. Kate Tooey, who is yet living in Brookfield and is as young 
and clear-headed almost as a school girl, remembers many things of 
interest regarding old Thayer and the early settlement of Brookfield. 
She is the widow of James Tooey, who was born in County Mayo, 
Ireland, in March, 1832. Mr. Tooey came with his father, Augustine 
Tooey, to the United States in 1839, and settled first in Alleghany 
county, New York. The family were frequently on the move and 
before many years James came to Missouri. He was married to 
Katherine McCormick, at Hannibal, November 26, 1859, the Rev. Father 
James Murphy officiating. Mr. and Mrs. Tooey have had eight children, 
three sons and five daughters. 

It is not the intention, however, to give a sketch of the Tooey 
family here, but merely to present some of the interesting recollections 
of Mrs. Kate Tooey. She said: 

''James, my husband, and his brother, Patrick Tooey, came to 
America when very young men. Their first work was on the Erie 
Canal, following the towpath. Later on Patrick kept the hotel at 
Buffalo. Then they went west to Troy, Illinois, and worked on a small 
railroad there. Their first contract in Missouri was on the grade at 
Mussel Fork. They had so many miles to do. Thayer was the end 
of the Hannibal & St. Joseph track then. It was intended to be the 
division point. Some small shops were established and a few houses 
put up. Some of the railroad officials told Mr. Tooey that that would 
be the division place. After he had finished his contract my husband 
run a store there and bought some lots. Patrick purchased land, quite 
a large tract. My husband run the only store that was in the place 
and did quite a good business. There was a saloon over at a place 
called Center Point, west of Thayer. It was run by some men from 
Keytesville. An effort was made to establish a town at Center Point. 
It was laid out in town lots. Soon there were two stores and another 
saloon. Then there was a little school on the hill to the south. I 
think that little school is in operation yet. 

''In about a couple of years the railroad people made up their 
minds to not have the division at Thayer. I believe it was because of 
the rough character of the ground there. The railroad went through a 
deep cut. Thayer was named after some officer of the road. A great 
many of the streets in Brookfield were named after railroad officers. 



116 HISTOEY OF LINTT COUXTY 

''After the division was taken from Thayer my husband had a 
chance to trade his store and property there for 280 acres of land east 
of where Marceline is now. Although he had never had any experi- 
ence in farming he decided that he would like to try his hand at it. 
His plans were to get a great big farm and work it on a grand scale. 
In those days Missouri was filling up fast and it looked like the good 
time was going to come pretty soon. 

''Later on my husband came to Brookfield and decided to buy 
some property and establish a general merchandise store. He had got 
tired of farming and wanted to get back in town. A lot was purchased 
on Main street, south of the track. This was a low flat place then and 
you could swim a boat pretty near everywheres. It was called 'The 
Scatters.' The water came down from the branch and seemed to 
scatter out all over the country. There was a great deal of lowland 
south of the track. The prairie grass in some places grew so tall that 
it was higher than a pony's back. It was called wild prairie grass 
and I tell you it looked wild to me. 

"During the few years that Thayer was the division point it was 
quite a lively place. The railroad boys had 'shindigs' every Saturday 
night. Many of the workmen made headquarters there and men were 
constantly coming and going. 

' ' Brother Patrick had a large, fine house. He was a pleasant, good- 
natured fellow, and took well with the people. Whenever the railroad 
officers came to Thayer, Patrick would entertain them. Mr. Robert 
Stewart, the promoter of the road, visited my house several times. 
That was before the war. I remember him distinctly. My husband, 
like his brother Patrick, was a great hand to entertain guests. I 
remember Mr. Stewart was a very good talker. When the road was 
started my husband was offered the position of paymaster. 

"The first store operated in Brookfield was by my husband. It 
was south of the railroad. He didn't like the south side of the track 
as well and later on bought a lot on Boston street, back of the hotel, 
and afterwards moved to Main street. He continued in the merchandise 
business until he was burned out. When we first came to Brookfield it 
was a little frontier village, but it grew mighty fast. Most of the 
houses were but shanties, hurriedly put up for the use of the workmen 
on the road. 

"The great amusement of those days was dances, which were held 
at the hotel. Everybody took part and they had a famous time. In fact, 
it was a period of sociability and good nature. Sometimes the railroad 



HISTOKY OF LI]S[N COUXTY 117 

boys would have a little falling out, a few heads would be broken and 
some bloody noses, but they would make up and forget all about it in a 
day or two. 

"Bishop Hogan was our first priest. For quite a while he had 
charge of a Catholic church here. He would come over from St. 
Joseph. Now he is bishop in Kansas City. The Catholics then had 
a larger membership than any other church here. You know, it was 
the Irishmen who built the Hannibal & St. Joe railroad. They were 
great, stout, brawny fellows, and they were pretty lively. I remember 
one big fight they had here on election day. The two voting places 
in the county were Wyandotte and Linneus. The boys went over to 
vote and on the way back they became hilarious and had a scrap. 
Brother Patrick finally made peace with them and stopped the fight. 

"There was really nothing at all here at Brookfield when we first 
came. The only building was the boarding house on the south side. 
They used a little canoe to go back and forth to it. 

"There is one thing about Thayer that I can never forget. There 
was a man there as chief dispatcher whose name was Charlie Davis. 
He was quite a hand to play practical jokes. Living back in the country 
a ways was a colored man who imagined that he had been called to 
preach. Charlie invited him to come to Thayer and talk to the boys. 
The darky was given a stand on a flat car and the railroaders all gath- 
ered around him very solemn and earnest-like. Just as the colored 
preacher got terribly worked up in his talk some of the boys gave the 
car a start and sent it kiting down hill. He was the most surprised 
negro you ever saw in your life when the car finally stopped with a 
bump against some ties that had been thrown across the track. 

"Another game that Charles would play was on young fellows 
who would come in from the country and want a job on the railroad. 
About every other boy wanted to be a railroader in those days. Charlie 
would size an applicant up, look at him very solemnly, and then tell 
him that he would give him a job if he would go out and sweep off the 
platform. The boy, of course, would do as Charhe told him and then 
come in to see what was next. But that wouldn't be the end of his 
trouble. Charlie would go out and look very critically at each plank 
and if he would see a speck of dirt anywhere he would make the boy go 
out and sweep the whole platform over again. Most of them would 
get tired before they had taken the first lesson and would throw down 
their broom and go back to the farm. 

"I could tell you a great many things about those old davs, but I 



118 HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 

giiess yon wouldn't have room to print them all. They were good times, 
and we all lived happily and enjoyed life. It doesn't seem very long 
when one looks back over it, but when you see the tremendous change 
that has taken place since then in everything it seems like it might have 
been almost a century." 

Bishop John J. Hogan recently observed his eighty-fourth birthday 
anniversary and is in the enjoyment of very good health. He takes an 
active interest in the affairs of his diocese, and while the burden of 
the work falls on the shoulders of his coadjutor. Eight Rev. Thomas F. 
Lillis, Bishop Hogan is informed on every matter of interest going on 
in the diocese. 

Bishop Hogan was born in County Limerick, Ireland, in 1829. He 
retains the least bit of brogue and his undimmed eyes sliine with the 
humor of the "ould sod." He came to America in 1848 and was 
ordained a priest in St. Louis by Archbishop Kenrick in 1852. He 
was appointed the first bishop of the St. Joseph diocese in 1863, and 
in 1880, when the Kansas City diocese was formed, he was made first 
bishop of this diocese. 

George H. Davis, recently retired from the service of the Burling- 
ton road, began his career on the construction of the Hannibal & St. 
Joseph and worked his way upward. At the time of his retirement 
he held the record for longest continuous service with the road. During 
the early operation he was roadmaster for the western division and it 
became his duty to prepare for the run of the Pony Express train in 
1860. Mr. Davis related the story of that event as follows : 

"The completion of the Hannibal & St. Joseph railroad at 7 o'clock 
on the morning of February 13, 1859, and the trial run of the pony 
express across the state, April 3, 1860, were two of the most exciting 
events that occurred in northern Missouri previous to the Civil War. 

' ' The junction of the east and westward construction was made two 
miles east of Chillicothe, in a small cut in Mumpower's field. The day 
following several barrels of Mississippi river water were transported 
over the line from Hannibal and emptied into the Missouri river vith 
imposing ceremonies, the event typifying the union of the two great 
water courses of the American continent. It was a gala day for St. 
Joseph, a town formerly known as 'Robidoux Landing.' The tremen- 
dous travel to the Occident a decade before had been through that place 
and the goldseekers had left many dollars there, as it was the last 
outfitting point this side of the desert. 

** There was a banquet at the Planter's House the evening of 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 119 

February 14, attended by all the road officials and prominent citizens 
of St. Joseph. Gen. Jeff Thompson, who a few years later became a 
noted Confederate leader, was one of the speakers. It was the birth 
of a great commercial era in the West and everybody was immensely 
optimistic. 

''But the road had hardly been in operation before the war came 
on, and it was a mark for predatory bands of bushwhackers, who were 
constantly burning bridges and shooting into trains. I was roadmaster 
during the war and these troubles came right up against my depart- 
ment. We began putting steel on the sides of the cabs to protect the 
engineers and firemen. I saw one of the little locomotives roll into St. 
Joseph one day after having journeyed through an ambuscade and 
counted fifty-two bullet marks against the cab and boiler. You might 
imagine that under such circumstances it would be difficult to secure 
engineers to take trains out, but it is a curious fact that not an engineer 
flinched. Like soldiers they were proud of the dangers through which 
they ran almost daily. Add Clark, the man who made the test run with 
the Pony Express, was the nerviest engineer I ever saw in my life. If 
he was ordered to, I believe he would have run his locomotive right 
up to a battery that was firing at him. 

''When the news came that our road was to be selected to carry 
the fast mail, under certain conditions, I sent orders to all the section 
foremen to spike down the switches. No trains were to be allowed on 
the line for an hour ahead of the fast train, which was called the Pony 
Express. Fuel agents at Macon, at Mooresville and at other places were 
notified to have a stock of cordwood on hand which could be emptied into 
the tender in less than no time. The 'Missouri' — all engines in Mis- 
souri in those days went by name instead of number — was selected 
to make the trial run, and Add Clark, one of the best engineers, was at 
the throttle. The track was carefully examined for days in advance to 
prevent the failure of the undertaking by accident. I had the thrilling 
pleasure of journeying with the officials in the single coach that carried 
the mail across the state on that memorable occasion. The orders 
given to Engineer Clark were to make a speed record that would stand 
fifty years. As remarked, a half century has well nigh passed and the 
record of the Pony Express still stands, in spite of the heavier equip- 
ment and more powerful engines. 

' ' Clark was not told to be careful ; the only harm that could have 
happened to him would have been a failure to make time, and he under- 
stood it. He also understood the dangerous character of his dirt road- 



120 HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 

bed, but it didn't interfere with his purpose. 

*'The president of the road, Joshua Gentry, Superintendent J. T. K. 
Hayward, Assistant Superintendent 0. N. Cutler and one or two others 
were in the car. 

"The sawed-otf train pulled out of Hannibal amid the waving of 
hats and the cheering of a mighty crowd. All the way across the state, 
at every station and cross-road, it was greeted by assemblies of men, 
women and children, many of whom had arisen in the early morning 
hours and journeyed a long distance to see the greatest sight of the 
times. As the Pony Express shot by the station, rocking like a kite 
in a gale, we could see the agents pushing the crowds back from the 
platforms and showing their sense of importance in their connection 
with the mighty event. 

' ' All the way out of town it was like some grand ovation to a con- 
quering army. There was inspiration enough to make Engineer Clark 
perform miracles with his little wood-burner machine. 

"At Brookfield, the division, there was a very brief stop for a bite 
to eat. Someone brought Engineer Clark a plate of nice cake. The 
hero, however, had other things on his mind. 

" 'No — no cake, thank you — no cake today,' he said. 

' ' When the train pulled in and stopped amid the waiting thousands 
at the St. Joseph depot, Engineer Clark, pale, greasy and grand, 
stepped majestically from his iron horse, which stood panting like a 
blooded racer. He was the dazzling hero of the hour. He had covered 
the 206 miles from Hannibal to St. Joseph in a little over four hours, 
a performance which at the time was little short of miraculous, and 
which, even at this day, is mighty near the standard of the limited 
express trains of England. 

"It was a big day for Engineer Clark and the Hannibal & St. 
Joseph road, which had secured a big mail contract by the day's work." 

But there was another hero at St. Joseph on that noted occasion. 
His name has not come down like that of the gallant engineer, but he 
deserves mentioning. He was little, insignificant looking and thin- 
faced. He wore a peaked cap, riding boots, and held daintily in his 
right hand a small whip. Beside him was standing a bay pony, in 
front of the United States Express office. This other hero was the 
pony rider, waiting for the little pouches the mail train had toiled so 
hard to deliver. Blood, nerve and muscle took up the race where fire, 
steam and mechanical skill left off. With desperate haste the carrier 
rushed across with his mail pouches, the mail for the far West was 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 121 

sorted into little sacks and thrown across the pony. The rider mounted 
and lusty cheers went up for the little man who was to make the first 
dash into the great West. A ferry boat, steam up and ready to cast 
off, received horse and rider and was soon plowing across the river. 
Then the rider touched spurs to his horse and galloped out of sight. 
He formed one link in the chain of horses and riders that was to con- 
nect the East and the West and cover a distance of 1,900 miles. It 
was the birth of the Overland Mail, one of the most picturesque features 
in the development of the West. Fresh ponies waited the rider every 
ten miles; the rider's daily journey was sixty miles. His duty was to 
keep going. He stopped to pass the time of day with no man and if he 
was chased by Indians or outlaws he was to keep going without asking 
questions and dodge the best he could. Day and night the chain rolled 
on, carrying the news from the East to the far West and back home 
again. It brought to the gold miner tidings of loved ones and made 
life endurable. The letters were written on the thinnest of paper and 
the tariff on each was $5. 

While Mr. P. H. Houlahan was trainmaster the fast passenger 
service between Chicago and Kansas City was established. In order 
to see that the "old" Hannibal & St. Joe division held up its end of 
the work, Mr. Houlahan went over his jurisdiction from Kansas City 
to Quincy and back in the engine cabs the night of the first run. As 
thorough precautions were taken for the success of the initial trip as 
were employed on the first run of the Pony Express. On the return 
trip, while rounding a curve near the old town of Carbon, in Macon 
county, the pilot of the hard-driven engine slid along the outer rail, 
causing a shower of sparks to fly. Later the curve was straightened 
and the outer rail lowered. The best engines on the division were put 
on this fast service, but they were small affairs compared with the 
mighty machines in use today. 

Following is the schedule of the Missouri end of the first fast run 
of the Chicago-Kansas City service: 

Eastbound 

Left Kansas City 6:30 p. m., December 18, 1887 

Arrived Brookfield 10 :22 p. m., December 18, 1887 

Left Brookfield 10 :27 p. m., December 18, 1887 

Arrived Macon 11 :32 p. m., December 18, 1887 

Arrived Quincy 1 :45 a. m., December 19, 1887 



132 HISTORY OF LINX COUNTY 

Westbound 

Left Quincy 2 :06 a. m., December 19, 1887 

Arrived Macon 4:13 a. m., December 19, 1887 

Arrived Brookfield 5 :15 a. m., December 19, 1887 

Left Brookfield 5 :20 a. m., December 19, 1887 

Arrived Kansas City 9 :15 a. m., December 19, 1887 

The fast train was first called the "Eli," a name which clung to it 
for many years. Within recent years it has been officially designated 
as "The Chicago-Missouri Limited." On the time card it is referred 
to as 56 (eastbound) and 55 (westbound). 

The train consists of from ten to twelve heavy sleeper, chair and 
express cars. It is hauled by a class S-2 simple engine, superheated ; 
69-inch drivers; six drivers, four-wheeled truck forward, and trailer 
under cab, 12 wheels in all ; weight of engine and loaded tender, 396,400 
pounds. This type of locomotive can haul ten loaded coaches on the 
level at from sixty to seventy miles an hour. Its power is sufficient to 
cover heavy grades and maintain the schedule with ease. 

Here are some figures from one of the runs showing the economy 
of this engine : 

Train 56, Felix Allison, engineer; engine No. 2938, superheated; 
number of miles run, 204 (from Brookfield to Galesburg, 111.) ; number 
of cars, 9 ; number of car miles, 1,836 ; number tons coal taken on run, 
none ; tender started out with 9 tons ; coal used per car mile, 10 pounds. 

Some statistics from Brookfield division: Officers residing at 
Brookfield : 

W. A. Chittenden, superintendent. 

E. F. Ledford, assistant superintendent. 

H. W. Johnson, master mechanic. 

E. W. Muder, master carpenter. 

E. Huber, roadmaster. 
J. A. Cotter, roadmaster. 

F. M. Veal, assistant roadmaster. 
E. H. Allen, chief dispatcher. 

P. A. Weigner, night chief dispatcher. 

Train Dispatchers— J. M. Walker, J. H. Findley, W. E. O'Neill, 
F. A. Young, A. G. Eodgers, J. W. Eeed, F. D. Brown, T. H. Fox, 
A. W. Warinner, J. S. Shepherd, G. E. Slade. 

Daily passenger trains out of Brookfield, 10. 

Daily freight trains out of Brookfield, average, 30. 

Weight of rails used on Brookfield division, from 85 to 90 pounds. 



HISTORY OF LIXX COUNTY 123 

Employes in all departments of road residing at Brookfield, 762. 

Telephones were installed May 17, 1909, between Brookfield and 
Hannibal and Quincy for dispatching trains and for the handling of 
all messages, both railroad and Western Union, and all the telegraph 
instruments were removed in that territoiy. The telephones are very 
much of an improvement over the telegraph, especially in the handling 
of trains ; more work can be accomplished and they are more satisfactory 
in every way. 

The Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe 

With the advent of the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe Eailroad, 
Marceline sprang into existence and soon became one of the important 
railroad and mining centers of Linn county. The town was founded in 
1888. It is the general division point between Kansas City and Fort 
Madison, and has the railroad shops, roundhouses and operating head- 
quarters for the division. The discovery of an inexhaustible bed of 
coal near the city gave the yoimg town an impulse which soon placed it 
among the front ranks of the live towns of Missouri. The finding of 
coal was an important thing for the railroad, which takes an immense 
amount of the output. 

Marceline now has a population of over 4,000, with all the con- 
veniences and improvements of a modern city. The Santa Fe Eailroad 
has lately completed its second track, the first improvement of the sort 
in the state. Wlien the road was constructed in the latter '80s, the bed 
and bridges were prepared for the second track. This gives the Santa 
Fe road splendid facilities for the handling of immense trains going and 
coming from the great commercial centers. 

The construction contracts for the Santa Fe road were let in 
December, 1886, and the first train was run over the line January 1, 
1888. The work was pushed with unusual rapidity, because it was the 
desire of the managers to get a through line into Chicago as soon as 
possible. 

One of the largest contractors' suits ever before a Missouri court 
developed out of the construction of the Santa Fe railroad through this 
section of the state. As the work approached its completion it became 
evident that the engineers for the railroad and those employed by the 
contractors, Benezette Williams & Co., of Chicago, would never agree 
on the amount due on final estimates. The section in dispute started 
in the Grand Eiver valley, in Chariton county, and continued to a point 
northeast of Ethel, in Macon county, a distance of forty miles. The 
contention was as to the character of the earth. It was insisted by the 



124 HISTORY OF hl^Hs COUNTY 

contractors that it was hardpan and that the company's engineers 
should classify it as such and allow for it. 

The method of classifying the material, allowances for hauling 
and the alleged arbitrary change of grade at the Wabash road, and also 
the change in the line, were among the points at issue between the 
contractors and the railroad company. The plaintiffs claimed a balance 
due them on final estimates of $188,311.74. The railway engineers 
figured that the payment due the contractors was only $30,399.06. 

The litigation was in court some ten years. It finally reached 
F. L. Schofield, a distinguished attorney of Hannibal, who was agreed 
upon as referee. It became his duty to listen to evidence concerning 
every foot of the road in dispute. It was a prodigious undertaking. 
The taking of testimony was begun in the United States Court room at 
Hannibal in February, 1894. This was after all the preliminary spar- 
ring in the Circuit Court and the Supreme Court. The plaintiffs were 
represented by John E. McKeighan, of St. Louis, George A. Mahan, of 
Hannibal. Gardner Lathrop, of Kansas City, and Ben Eli Guthrie, of 
Macon, appeared for the railroad company. 

The evidence was voluminous. One newspaper account said that 
the record "filled a freight car." It was hardly that bad, however. The 
witnesses went over the road on foot and dug down into the earth in 
order to testify as to its character. At one time there was an adjourn- 
ment to take the evidence of B. F. Booker, then living in Mexico City, 
in the Republic of Mexico. Booker had been assistant chief engineer 
for the railroad company during the construction period. At the time 
Referee Schofield 's court adjourned to Mexico to take his deposition, 
Booker was dying of consumption. Not long afterwards he passed 
away. The Santa Fe road furnished a special car for the court, lawyers, 
stenographers and the parties at interest for the entire trip. On an- 
other occasion a journey was made to New Orleans to take the deposi- 
tion of E. E. Earl, who was the division engineer on the west end of 
the construction. One of the witnesses came all the way from Pales- 
tine, the Holy Land, to testify on the part of the plaintiffs. 

The evidence all in. Referee Schofield began on his tremendous task 
of trying to find out what was justice between the railroad company 
and the contractors. He was aided in this by the attorneys, who argued 
from their respective view points for two weeks. The referee found 
that the balance due the contractors over the amount allowed them in 
the final estimates of the engineers was $83,505.77. The main part of 
this allowance was for hardpan. Exceptions were filed to the referee's 
report by the defendant railroad. There was another long argument 



HISTORY OF LINX COUNTS 125 

before Judge Andrew Ellison at Macon. Judge Ellison handed down a 
written opinion in April, 1896. In this opinion he disallowed every 
item which the referee had credited to the plaintiffs. He found that 
the evidence had shown no fraud or misconstruction of contract by the 
railway engineers. 

Judge Ellison held that the claim for hardpan having been called 
to the attention of the railway engineers during the construction, and 
they having passed upon the material, had decided that it was not 
hardpan, and that their decision could not now be set aside "and sub- 
stituted therefor a shadowy memory and recollection of eight years 
ago. ' ' 

The defendant railway's exceptions to the referee's report were all 
sustained by Judge Ellison, except as to the lien and interest, which 
were overruled and judgment ordered for plaintiffs for $36,785.92. The 
tender of the railroad in the first place had been $30,399.06. 

Judge Ellison's decision was affirmed by the Supreme Court in 
1900, and the case ended. 



CHAPTER X 

The Brunswick, Linneus and Milan Plank Road — First Publication of 
Receipts and Expenditures — County Court Decides War Tax Levy 
Unconstitutional — The Town of Thayer Vacated — Some Neiv 
Townships — Neiv County Jail — Linn County Agricultural and 
Mechanical Society — Common Pleas Court — Fight Over County 
Printing — Awarded to Paper that Paid One Dollar for It — Attempt 
to Remove County Seat Defeated. 

William Sanders, who lias been referred to before in connection 
with the courthouse, took the contract to build the county jail and com- 
pleted it August 1, 1854. It required about two and one half years 
to complete the building. J. W. Hardy was the first jailer. The session 
of the general assembly, in the winter of 1852-53, passed an act making 
the office of county treasurer an elective one. All such offices in the 
counties mentioned in the act were to be declared vacant on the first 
Monday in August, 1853, at which time the voters were to elect a 
treasurer. Ed Hoyle, who had been appointed to succeed David 
Prewitt, was elected. 

The act referred to also ordered an election on the first Monday 
in August, 1854, and from that time on there was to be an election every 
two years. At the election in 1854 John Gr. Flournoy was elected 
treasurer. 

In the same session of the legislature there was an act passed to 
incorporate the Brunswick, Linneus and Milan plank road company. 
The capital stock of this early day road improvement society was not 
to exceed $300,000, and it provided that when any sum in excess of 
$20,000 should be subscribed, the company should be authorized to 
organize. The Linn county members of the company were Jacob 
Smith, Jeremiah Phillips, Samuel Price, Edward Hoyle, John G. Flour- 
noy, Henry Wilkinson, Robert W. Menifee, Jacob E. Quick, Beverly 
Neece and William B. Woodruff. 

Before much headway was made with the road, railroad talk had 
diverted the public mind to that method of travel and the plank road 
had been succeeded by a swdfter rival. 

136 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 127 

The Probate Court of Linn county was established at the same 
time these other acts were passed. 

John R. Baker was granted the right to charge at his mill a toll 
of 1-6 for grinding instead of 1-8, as the price had been heretofore. 

John W. Gentry was permitted to keep one store within the county 
without paying a license on stipulation that the said Gentry did not 
invest over $300 capital. 

The act which gave to Linn and Chariton counties the right to in- 
vest the proceeds of the sale of the swamp lands donated to them by 
the state, and subscribing to the stock of any plank road or railroad, 
was approved February 24, 1853. 

The road leading from Linneus to Trenton in Grundy county, by 
the way of Dye's mill and the storehouse of B. F. White & Co., was 
declared to be a state road. 

The last act of that legislature that bears any particular signifi- 
cance for Linn county was the appropriation of $500 to build a monu- 
ment over the grave of Senator Lewis F. Linn. 

All along through the records is found a particular ambition to 
keep the county's buildings in good repair and to improve the roads 
and bridges. On June 1, 1857, the county court appropriated $800 to 
repair the court house. Later on other repairs were made from time 
to time as the occasion seemed to warrant. It seems that the building 
must have been larger than the actual demands of the officers, and tha't 
a thrifty county court had been in the habit of renting out such portions 
as were not needed. However, in April, 1859, an order was made that 
thereafter no part of the court house should be rented for any purpose. 
On May 3, 1858, a petition was presented to the county court, ask- 
ing that body to divide Baker township in two and to call tlie new town- 
ship North Salem. At that time Baker was a pretty large township, 
being over three congressional townships in size. It was 12 miles north 
and south, except on its west border, and 10 miles east and west, and 
was the northeast township of the county. 

The court granted the petition to create the new township out of 
Baker, and made an order that it be called North Salem, and bounded 
as follows: Commencing at the northeast corner of Linn countv; 
thence west on the county line, to the northwest corner of Section 3, in 
Township 60, of Range 19 ; thence south along the section line to the 
southwest corner of Section 34, in said Township and Range ; thence 
east along the township line between Townships 59 and 60, to the 
county line between Linn and Macon counties ; thence north along said 
county line to the place of beginning. 



128 HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 

Tlie first election in North Salem Township was held the following 
Augnst. The judges chosen were T. G. Childress, William Putman and 
John B. Baker. 

Originally, Linn connty included all the territory of the township 
line between 56 and 57, of Ranges 21 and 22, to Grand River, in the 
forks made by Locust creek, the channel of Grand river from the mouth 
of Locust creek being the Linn and Livingston county line to the middle 
of Range line 22, dividing Range 22 equally, and where the same line 
crosses Grand river. 

This was changed by an act of the legislature, approved January 
10, 1855, which made the south line of Linn to follow the township line, 
dividing 56 and 57, instead of following Locust creek to its mouth and 
then northwest, keeping in the channel of Grand river. 

This act, however, reserved to Linn county the swamp land within 
this territory (the strip being added to Livingston county), with the 
right to sell the same and retain the money. This change gives five 
miles of Linn county's southern line bounded by Livingston county. 

The first publication in a newspaper of the receipts and expendi- 
tures of the county was made June 6, 1859. The Linneus Dem,ocratic 
Bulletin was awarded the publication. 

The poor farm which the county court had purchased for the care 
of paupers, seems to have been a failure in the early days, because the 
county court ordered it sold on February 8, 1860, and went back to the 
old plan of letting out the keeping of the poor to the lowest and best 
bidders. At this writing (1912), Linn county has an institution for the 
care of its poor which is one of the best of its class in the state. A 
description of it will be found elsewhere in this history. 

A petition for a new township to be called ''Enterprise," was pre- 
sented to the county court August 13, 1860. The petition was granted 
and the court ordered the bounds of the new township, which was to be 
cut off from Benton Township, to be as follows: 

"Beginning at the northwest corner of Section 4, Township 60, 
Range 19; thence running west along the county line to the middle of 
Section 10, Township 60, Range 20; thence south to the center of the 
north line of Section 15, Township 59, Range 20; thence east to the 
northwest corner of Section 16, Township 59, Range 19; thence north 
to the place of beginning." 

The year 1861 found the country on the verge of a civil war. In 
August of that year an order came for the county court to levy a tax 
to aid in the prosecution of the war. The county court took the 
responsibility of refusing to make this levy on the following grounds : 



HISTOBY OF LINX COUNTY 129 

'*It is ordered by the court here that the military tax for the year 
1861 be not levied, for the reason that this court is of the opinion that 
the law authorizing said tax to be levied is unconstitutional," 

The judges of the county court, when the above order was made, 
were S. P. Phillips, Joseph C. Moore and James A. Maddox. 

The general business of the county was much depressed during the 
Civil War. It was hard to make tax collections, and the delinquent list 
grew rapidly. 

An act of the general assembly, approved March 20, 1861, vacated 
the town of Thayer, which was the original Missouri division point of 
the Hannibal & St. Joseph Eailroad. There will be found something 
of interest concerning this town in the railroad chapter. The removal 
of the division from Thayer to Brookfield obliterated Thayer and many 
of the present generation have never heard of that once very active 
railroad center. 

The voting precinct of Yellow Creek township was changed from 
Wyandotte to St. Catharine on September 1, 1862, 

Brookfield was made a voting precinct in Jefferson township,, 
February 6, 1865; was incorporated as a town October 10, 1866. The 
township of Brookfield was organized July 2 of the same year. 

Bottsville, afterwards Meadville, was made a voting place in Par- 
son Creek township. May 1, 1865. 

The state road from Brookfield to Brunswick, intersecting the state 
road from Laclede to Brunswick, was laid out and opened in 1865. 

In 1865 the first bridge tax was levied, the amount being 20 cents 
on the $100 valuation. Up until this time the county had got along 
with the road and canal fund, but the increased population and the 
urgent demand for bridges necessitated a tax levy to build them. Con- 
siderable repairing was done on the court house in 1866, The cupola 
was constructed at a cost of $1,000, and some other work done. The 
total cost of improvements and additions made since the court house 
was first built amounted to $8,456.20, something over twice the original 
cost of construction. 

In the old court house, previous to the November term, 1866, the 
county judges had been content to serve for $2 per day per man. With 
the improved appearance of the county's ofiicial home, the judges felt 
justified in giving themselves a modest raise. At the May term, 1866, 
they fixed the price per day for county judges at $4.66f . As that was a 
little awkward to figure out the per diem was raised at the August term 
to $5. 

Clay township was the next to be added to the list. It was taken 



130 HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 

out of Parson Creek and Jackson townships, which had covered all the 
territory west of Locust creek. The order for Clay township 's organi- 
zation was made January 5, 1869, and the boundaries of the new town- 
ship described as follows: 

' ' Commencing in the southwest corner of Section 15 and the north- 
west corner of Section 22, Township 59, Range 22, at the Livingston 
county line, running east with said line between 15 and 22 to the center 
of the channel of Locust creek; thence south meandering the channel 
of said stream to where it crosses the section line between 22 and 27, 
Township 58, Range 21 ; thence west following said section line to the 
Livingston county line at the southwest corner of Section 22, Township 
58, Range 22; thence north with the county line to the place of 
beginning. 

William Parr was the first justice of the peace for the new town- 
ship, being appointed March 3, 1869. 

Strawberry School House was designated as the voting precinct in 
Clay township. The judges of the election were John Branson, James 
A. Neal and William Parr. 

Bucklin township was created out of East Y'ellow Creek township, 
September 7, 1863, under this order: 

" It is ordered by the court here that the petition of Sampson Wyatt 
and others of Yellow Creek township, praying for a division of the 
municipal township, as aforesaid, by a subdivision line running north 
and south through said township, to be called Bucklin and that the 
prayer of said petitioners be received and granted." 

The election precinct was at Bucklin. Jesse Austin, David 
Brownlee and Paul Shreckise were appointed judges. 

Here is the court's order defining the lines of Bucklin township: 

'■ ' Commencing at the southeast corner of Section 32, Township 57, 
Range 18, running east on the county line between Chariton and Linn 
county to the southeast corner of Section 36, Township 57, Range 18 ; 
thence north on the county line to the northwest corner of Section 1, 
Township 58, Range 18 ; thence west to the northwest corner of Section 
5, Township 58, Range 18; thence south to the place of beginning." 

Grantsville township was organized February 20, 1870, and the 
voting precinct established in the village of Grantsville. The boundary 
of the township was somewhat changed from the original organization, 
Avest Yellow Creek being then its eastern boundary, which is now on a 
section line, for three miles, thence east one half mile; thence north 
until it strikes the creek ; then continuing up Yellow creek to the north 
boundary line. Two miles of its west boundary, commencing at the 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 131 

north end, have been moved east one mile. With the exception of these 
changes Grantsville township remains as originally formed. 

At the same time Enterprise township was enlarged by taking in 
the two sections that belonged to Baker, on its eastern boundary, and 
which run like an arm to the Sullivan county line between the townships 
of Enterprise and North Salem. This gives Enterprise the size of a 
Congressional township, less the dropping of the township line between 
60 and 61. 

With the organization of Grantsville, the municipal township 
organization of Linn countj^ was complete, and but few material 
changes in the township lines have since occurred. 

After several changes back and forth the name of Meadville was 
finally substituted for Bottsville, on October 6, 1869. 

A petition asking the county court to subscribe $150,000 to the 
Chicago & Southwest Railroad was rejected July 18, 1871. 

Brookfield raised a subscription of $100,000 for the Brookfield & 
Northern Railroad, October 17, 1871. 

Baker and North Salem townships voted $25,000 each to the same 
road October 19, 1871. The same day that Brookfield made its sub- 
scription to the railroad it was enlarged to take in all that remained of 
Sections 5, 7 and 8. 

The vote for township organization was : In favor of the proposi- 
tion, 1,627, against it 22. One board of supervisors only was elected 
under its provisions, holding until a change was made dividing the 
county into four judicial districts, in 1874. The board of supervisors 
received $2 per day for services actually rendered, and the new county 
court of five judges were allowed $3 per day. 

It was decided to build a new county jail in 1869. B. F. Northcott 
was appointed on April 6th to estimate the cost of the new building, 
and was authorized to sell the old jail and the ground upon which it 
stood, and to purchase lots for the new building, more convenient to the 
court house. Lots 1, 2 and 3, Block One, of Smith's Addition, were 
selected. They were purchased in October for $150, A tax was then 
levied to build the jail, but it was not until November following that the 
county court made an order appropriating $10,000 for that purpose. 
The order specified that Charles A. Fore should superintend the erection 
of the building. The superintendent was not satisfied with the ground 
selected, and as he was authorized by the county court to select other 
property for jail purposes he did so. Mr. Fore chose Lot 5, Block 22, 
and his selection was approved by the county court. The court ordered 
that the treasurer pay A. W. Mullins, grantor, $250 for the lot. The 



132 HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 

jail building was completed in 1871 and was approved by the court on 
September 18. The total cost, as shown by the superintendent's report, 
was $8,680.26. Including the amount allowed the superintendent, the 
costs ran up to about $9,000. 



The Linn County Agricultural and Mechanical Society was 
organized on February 8, 1870. Its purpose was to promote improve- 
ments in agriculture, manufacturing and the raising of stock. In 
August the county court appropriated $150 to aid the society in holding 
the county fair, and a like sum was appropriated in August of the fol- 
lowing year. In September, 1872, the court gave the society 
another $150. 



The Common Pleas Court was established in 1867, and at the end 
of four years its jurisdiction was enlarged by an amendment passed 
at the session of the general assembly, approved March 20, 1871, giving 
it ' ' exclusive and original jurisdiction of all misdemeanors arising un- 
der the laws of this state, committed in Linn county. ' ' It was provided 
that, the judge of the Common Pleas Court could not practice law in the 
county. His salary was $600 per year. This court was finally abolished 
January 1, 1881. 



The Linneus Bulletin and the Brookfield Gazette were the two 
papers of Linn county in 1875. Both were anxious to secure the county 
printing that year and to be known as the official organ of the county. 
The Bulletin, being published at the county seat, was closer in touch 
with the work and the official printing was finally awarded to that 
paper. The Brookfield Gazette, with an energy which has always 
characterized it, made a bid for the county printing in 1875, and the 
Bulletin strove hard to retain it. The county court finally awarded the 
contract to the Bulletin for one year at 50 cents per square. At the 
November term the Gazette made the startling proposition to do the 
county printing for nothing. The county court obligingly revoked its 
order giving the work to the Bidletin and decided that the Gazette's 
bid was the best and cheapest. But the Bulletin wasn't through. It 
had just one more card to play, and it was a winner. At the December 
term of the court the Bulletin people planked down one dollar in cold, 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 133 

hard cash for the privilege of doing the county printing for the ensuing 
year. The county court pocketed the money and then looked at the 
Gazette people, but they shook their heads, and the honor went to the 
Bulletin. 



In that year the railroad assessment showed 49 miles of railroad 
in Linn County. 

The county collector's office was separated from the sheriff's office 
in 1877. 

James Tooey, whose name frequently figures in the development 
of Linn county, was appointed collector. In November, 1878, another 
party was elected, but the incumbent's health proved so bad that he 
was compelled to resign and Mr. Tooey was again tendered the office. 

The first iron bridge erected in Linn county was across Locust 
creek, near Austin's mill. It was built in 1878 by the King's Iron 
Bridge Manufacturing Company. There are now quite a number of 
iron or steel bridges in the county. 

The town authorities of Linneus were granted the privilege of 
digging two public wells, one on the northwest corner of the public 
square and the other on the southwest corner in July, 1879. These 
wells were for fire protection and the general use of the citizens. 

The petition of William H. Brownlee et al., of Brookfield, for the 
removal of the county seat from Linneus to Brookfield was received, 
ordered filed and indefinitely postponed, the filing order being made 
June 25, 1879. 

The question remained quiet for a year when it again came up, and 
this time was submitted to a vote of the people. The proposition was 
defeated by a large majority. 

In the same election township organization was carried by a vote 
of 688 to 296. 

The proposition to erect a new court house to cost $15,000 was sub- 
mitted to a vote of the people in April, 1881, and defeated. 

In 1880 the county court paid $3 as bounty for two wolf scalps, and 
in 1881 purchased another wolf scalp at the same price. 



CHAPTER XI 

Assessed Valuation of Linn County in 1881 — Some Comparative Statis- 
tics — Last Census Bulletin Values Linn County Farm Land at 
$54.80 per Acre — Thirteen Farms of 1,000 Acres and Over — Rapid 
Rise in Missouri Land Values — Linn County's Total Taxable 
Wealth, $10,217,242.05- — Report on Live Stock — Some Important 
Figures on Missouri — Corn Crop of State Valued at $107,347,000 — 
Wheat Crop, $29,926,000 — Tenant Farmers Thrive — General 
Farming Conditions Satisfactory. 

The petition for the incorporation of the town of Eversonville was 
presented to the county court November 7, and granted. Its first 
officers, as a board of trustees, were J. F. Harris, J. H. Tharp, John 
Blodgett, W. B. Brinkley and J. A. Hudson. 

Meadville was incorporated by the county court, January 4, as a 
city of the fourth class. George W. Goldman was mayor and John 
Grafton, marshal. 

The assessed valuation of Linn county for 1881 was, real estate, 
$2,560,063; personal property, $1,612,021; total valuation, $4,172,084. 
As a comparative table the Government Census Bulletin for 1910 
is interesting. It gives the value of all farm property in Linn county 
at $28,862,815. In 1900 Linn county farm property was valued $14,- 
093,253. The percentage of increase between 1900 and 1910 was 104.8. 
The Thirteenth Census Bulletin of the United States, but recently 
issued, contains some interesting statistics concerning the development 
of Missouri counties in the decade between 1900 and 1910. It gives 
Linn county a population of 25,253. There is but one county in the 
Second Congressional district that has a larger population. Randolph 
county has 26,182. For the purpose of comparison the statistics of a 
few of the larger and more populous counties of the district are here 
given : 

Population (1910). No. of Farms. 

Linn- 25,253 2,689 

Livingston 19,453 2,479 

Chariton 23,503 3,481 

Randolph 26,182 2,396 

134 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 135 

Linn county lias 13 farms of 1,000 acres and over ; Livingston, four ; 
Chariton, four, and Randolph, two. 

The value of farm property in Linn county jumped from $14,093,- 
253 in 1900 to $28,862,815 in 1910. Linn county's percentage of in- 
crease in those years was 104.8; Livingston's, 84.7; Chariton's, 98.1, 
and Randolph's, 92.6. 

Linn county's approximate ladd area is 400,640 acres. The other 
counties mentioned above have the following areas: Livingston, 
339,840 acres ; Chariton, 491,520 acres ; Randolph, 314,240 acres. 

Of this area Linn county has in improved farm land 322,196 acres; 
Livingston county has 257,935 acres ; Chariton county has 376,512 acres ; 
Randolph has 223,908 acres. 

The percentage of improved land in those counties is as follows: 
Linn county, 85.5; Livingston county, 81.1; Chariton county, 85; Ran- 
dolph county, 78.5. 

The value of farm buildings in Linn county increased from $1,922,- 
730 in 1900 to $3,444,505 in 1910. 

The value of land per acre in Linn county has increased, according 
to the government's bulletin, from $23.63 per acre in 1900 to $54.80 
in 1910. The government's report of land values in the neighboring 
counties is as follows : 

Macon, $40.56 per acre ; Chariton, $52.48 per acre ; Randolph, $43.19 
per acre ; Sullivan, $42.95 per acre. 

The number of farms in Linn county in 1910 was 2,496. Of these 
685 run from 50 to 99 acres. 

The value of domestic animals, poultry and bees in Linn county 
increased from $2,534,203 in 1900 to $4,113,710 in 1910. 

These figures, compiled by the government, an absolutely unbiased 
source, tell the story of Linn county's agricultural development and 
standing better than columns of description. 

The high value placed upon the land by the government's report 
was because of the productivity of the soil and its superior qualities 
generally. The remarkable fact that the value has considerably more 
than doubled in the last decade is due to increased energy in develop- 
ment and a better understanding of the soil capacity. 

Another development that caused the rapid rise in value of Mis- 
souri lands within the period referred to was a recognition by Iowa and 
Illinois farmers that Missouri land had been valued ridiculously low. 
As a consequence, in the early part of the decade thousands of farmers 
in those and other northern and eastern states sold their homes and 
came into Missouri, taking up the $20 and $25 land as fast as they 



136 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

could get it. This had a great effect in opening the eyes of the Mis- 
sourians to the real value of their land and prices shot up rapidly. 
Still, many conservative ones say that the price is yet low ; that it will 
advance until it is as high as land in Iowa and Illinois, which is not 
more fertile than Missouri soil and commands a much higher price. 

The government's report for 1910 on domestic animals gives Linn 
county this standing : 

Cattle — Total number, 41,478. Dairy cows, 11,048; other cows, 
3,562; yearling heifers, 4,001; calves, 4,041; yearling steers and bulls, 
5,066; other steers and bulls, 13,760. Value, $1,385,692. 

Horses — Total number, 14,478. Mature horses, 12,439; yearling 
colts, 1,679; spring colts, 360. Value, $1,629,207. 

Mules — Total number, 2,656. Mature mules, 1,864; yearling colts, 
705; spring colts, 87. Value, $331,629. 

Asses and Burros — 105. Value, $35,785. 

Swine — Total number, 49,194. Mature hogs, 29,265; spring pigs, 
19,929. Value, $394,066. 

Total value of real estate in Linn county (June 1, 1910), $6,588,938 ; 
total value of personal property, $2,320,229 ; total value railroad, bridge, 
telegraph and telephone, $1,308,075.05; total taxable wealth in county, 
$10,217,242.05. 

Sheep — Total number, 37,060. Rams, ewes and weathers, 24,546; 
spring lambs, 12,514. Value, $167,367. 

Goats— 405. Value, $1,320. 

Poultry and Bees — Number of poultry of all kinds, 253,834. Value, 
$158,399. Number of colonies of bees, 3,074. Value, $10,245. 

In the above the writer has simply sought to bring out the standing 
of Linn county as shown by the report of the government. As touching 
the state in general a recent article in the St. Louis Globe-Democrat, 
compiled from the same source, presents the following interesting and 
valuable information for the farmer: 

The Missouri farmer, aided by his able assistants, the Missouri 
hen, the Missouri cow, and the Missouri mule, succeeded in almost 
doubling the value of farm property in the state during the decade 
ending April 15, 1910, the date of the United States census which 
reveals these figures. The census report on Missouri's agricultural 
resources has just been issued from the office of E. Dana Durand, 
director of the census. 

The value of farm property in Missouri increased from $1,033,- 
121,897 to $2,032,917,488 during the decade. Farm property included 



HISTORY OF LIXX COUNTY 137 

land, buildings, implements, machinery and live stock. The average 
value of Missouri land rose from $20.46 per acre to $41.80. 

The Census Bureau sagely remarks, however, that in taking into 
consideration the increase in values in agriculture the general increase 
in prices of all commodities during the same decade should be borne in 
mind. It may be, therefore, that the farmer is not so much better off 
now than he was ten years ago, despite increased prices paid for his 
produce. 

The total acreage of improved land in the state rose during the last 
decade. Only 78.6 per cent of improved land is reported as farms, of 
which 71.1 per cent of the total area of the state is improved land. The 
unimproved condition of many of the counties in the Ozarks is to be 
blamed for this. A glance at the map which accompanies the report 
shows that six counties, Iron, Shannon, Reynolds, Carter, New Madrid 
and Pemiscot counties show less than 40 per cent of land area in farms. 
More backward in this respect even than these swampy or mountainous 
counties is the city of St. Louis, which is reported by the Census Bureau 
as having only 13 per cent of its area in farm lands. However, St. 
Louis city and county make the best showing in the value of their farm 
lands. With the farm lands of Jackson county, whereof the metropolis is 
Kansas City, they have the exclusive privilege of being designated on 
the map with a solid color showing value of farm lands over $125 per 
acre. The map indicates that the average value of lands in Taney 
county is $8.18 per acre ; in Shannon county, $9.94 an acre, and in Ozark 
county, $6.29 per acre. 

The leading crop in Missouri is corn, valued at $107,347,000, with 
wheat valued at $29,926,000. The value of the state's hay and forage 
crops is $33,845,000. Oats is valued at $10,254,000, and potatoes at 
$4,470,000, while cotton shows the comfortable total of $3,392,000. The 
statistics show that the acreage of corn has decreased slightly, as has 
also that of wheat. The acreage of cotton has doubled and that of 
oats, hay and potatoes has increased. 

Great as is the credit that belongs to the Missouri farmer, it must 
be remembered that he owes most of his profits to his dumb servants, 
the horses, mules, cattle and poultry. The value of farm animals for 
the state was $285,839,108, an increase of 78 per cent over the value ten 
years before. Strangest of the figures is the decrease in the value of 
Missouri cattle, despite the increase in the price of meat. The figures 
furnish an alibi when Missouri farmers are accused of getting the extra 
price the consumer pays for steak in these days. Although census 
reports give no reason for the decline in the value of Missouri cattle, 



138 HISTOKY OF LI XX COUXTY 

the figures support the claims of the farmers that they are raising beef 
on an unaccountable narrow margin, their profits being kept down by 
the packers. The value of Missouri cattle was $72,883,664, a decrease 
of 3.7 per cent in ten years. Of this number the value of the dairy 
cattle was $30,620,097. 

Horses represent a larger percentage of the wealth of Missouri 
than is usually thought. Says the report : 

' ' The value of horses and colts is more than one and one-half times 
that of the cattle, and the two together represent about 65 per cent of 
the value of all the live stock, while mules and mule colts represent 15.2 
per cent, swine 11.2 per cent, and poultry 4.2 per cent. 

The number of turkeys, geese and ducks decreased during the past 
ten years, but this was more than offset by the increase in the number 
and value of the chickens. The estimated value of all poultry was 
$11,871,000, or an increase of 107.5 per cent. 

About three farms in every twenty report bees. The number of 
colonies of bees decreased slightly, but their value increased from 
$508,217 to $584,549, or 15 per cent. There are only 277,244 farm 
owners in Missouri, holders and producers of all this wealth. Of these, 
259,111 are native white and 14,467 are foreign born. Whites mostly 
own the farms they work, for only 12.7 per cent of them are tenants. 

Great as was the increase in the value of farm products, there 
was a corresponding increase in the cost of producing them. Farm 
labor cost $18,644,695 in the year of 1909, or an increase of 90.2 per 
cent over the amount expended in 1899. The cost of feed was $17,148,- 
008, which was probably larger than in 1899, although the figures for 
that year were not reported. Fertilizer cost $671,073, which was an 
increase of 81.1 per cent. Only 6.6 per cent of Missouri farms use 
fertilizer, and the average expenditure for that purpose is only $36.40 
per farm. 

The census report indicates a tendency towards larger and better 
cultivated farms in Missouri. The average farm increased from 119.3 
acres to 124.8 acres. There was a decrease of 2.7 per cent in the 
number of farms and an increase of 1.7 in the area of farm land. 

Very satisfactory is the showing regarding tenant farmers. Thirty 
out of every hundred farms in Missouri are operated by tenants, but 
there has been no appreciable increase in the number of tenants during 
the decade. About two-thirds of the tenant farms are rented on a 
sharing basis and the remainder are rented for cash. 

A majority of Missouri farmers do their own work. Less than 
half of them hire any labor, although the total expenditure for farm 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 139 

labor increased $18,644,695, an increase of 90.2 per cent. About one- 
fifth of this amount is allowed for rent and board. 

That portion of the report which deals with mortgaged farms 
shows that the number of mortgages has increased from 80,662 in 1899 
to 88,486 in 1910. This condition is generally taken as an indication 
of prosperity, showing that the farmers have borrowed money to put 
into their business. The report shows that the amount of the mortgage 
debt of Missouri farms is $112,465,403, secured by lands and buildings 
valued at $398,476,000. 

Taken altogether, the figures indicate that, despite the movement 
of population from the country to the city, the farmer continues to 
prosper. Those who move to town sell their land to neighbors, so that 
there has been an increase of the size of farms, yet the farmers continue 
to work their own lands in the majority of cases. The decrease in the 
acreage of corn and wheat is due to the tendency toward a more diversi- 
fied system of farming. Cattle feeding for beef production seems to 
have fallen off slightly, but the number and value of other domestic 
animals kept, such as horses, mules, swine, poultry and bees, has 
increased. 



CHAPTER Xn 

Educational — The Civil War Depression — Peace Brings Advancement 
— Better Provisions for Schools — State Normals and Colleges — 
The Boy and Farm Life — Neiv Methods of Rural Schools — Early 
Missouri School History — Origin of Public School System in 1839 
— Law as Applied to Schools — Boards and Their Powers — Tax- 
ation — Length of Terms — School Funds and Appropriations — First 
Appropriation for Linn County — School Statistics of the County — 
Revieiv of Some of the Town and City Schools — County Spelling 
Match at Laclede — "Jack" Rummell the Champion Speller — Wins 
T'lvo Good Suits of Clothes — Ruth Benson Second. 

The development of Education in Missouri is as gratifying as the 
high standard the state has reached in commerce and industry. Not 
that the extension has been steady and uninterrupted, because there 
were dark periods when it seemed no advancement whatever was being 
made. But these were obstacles which were surmounted by the deter- 
mination of the people, and for every season of depression there was a 
corresponding era of growth that more than made up for the period of 
inactivity. 

The Civil War decade was disheartening to the friends of education 
and material development. But an even greater issue was at stake, 
and patriotic men laid all else aside until the political controversy was 
settled. Hard upon the war came slanders on the state because of the 
depredations of certain rough riders who had evolved from guerrillas 
into bandits. Whatever these bold raiders did was enlarged upon by 
people of other states, and Missouri acquired an unenviable and unde- 
served notoriety. It was because of this unfair reputation that the 
people determined to show to the world that they were in no sympathy 
with the outlaws, and that the best answer they could make to the 
slanders was by the encouragement of education. 

Provisions were made for state normals, colleges were endowed 
and every educational enterprise of merit was aided. A better and 
more comfortable class of schools sprang up in every district, village 
and town. The wages of school teachers were increased. Laws were 

140 



HISTORY OF LIXX COUNTY 141 

enacted providing for adequate terms. Practical courses of study were 
introduced and ancient methods discarded. Agricultural methods are 
being taught in many of the schools. Prizes are awarded to boys who 
will produce the finest specimens of corn. Boys and girls are taught 
the beauties of rural life and its great advantages over the congested 
city. Not only are such subjects stimulated among school children, 
but the whole population of the district is interested. With this 
increased interest progress followed as a matter of course. 

There never was a time when so much enthusiasm was shown in 
the erection and maintenance of good school facilities. In the country 
districts the old log cabin has long since given place to the model rural 
school building, and in the towns are large and handsome brick struc- 
tures with every modern convenience. 

The agitation for good country highways is largely inspired by the 
earnest desire of patrons for their children to be able to reach school 
conveniently in any sort of weather. 

The sort of education now imparted to the pupils of the rural 
schools is calculated to make the graduates satisfied with rural 
conditions. 

''The boy who becomes imbued with the spirit -of the country; 
whose eyes are opened to the possibilities of the farmer, and whose 
brain is trained to take advantage of these opportunities — that boy will 
never leave the farm for an uncertain existence in the city," writes 
Rex Beresford in The Prairie Farmer. "His training in agriculture 
and in the appreciation of things natural will increase many fold his 
value to himself, his neighbor and to society. ' ' 

That is the idea being carried out under the rural school system of 
Missouri today and the results have been gratifying. Boys and girls 
have been encouraged to show what they can do in the lines that are 
now being followed by the grown-ups. In many schools horticulture 
and landscape gardening are taught, and the children are given prac- 
tical lessons in the adornment of their own school yards. They are 
shown how a rough, unsightly farm, cultivated in a hap-hazard way, 
may be so handled as to become an attractive feature of the landscape. 
The character of crops, their cultivation and the development of growths 
new to the section are matters of study and discussion in many of the 
high schools. In short, the student is taught to see with clearer vision 
the advantages of his surroundings. He learns that to the true hus- 
bandman farm life is not a never-ending round of toil and drudgery, 
but that it may be made beautiful and happy, and that the real farmer 
has it in his power to become one of the most independent of men. 



142 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

The compiler of this history is indebted to Claude A. Phelps for 
the following brief sketch of ' ' Early Education in Missouri ' ' : 

The first school in the state was taught in the city of St. Louis by 
J. B. Tribeau, in 1774. This schoolroom was used about forty years, 
and it seems that during nearly all that time Mr. Tribeau was the 
teacher. 

The first legislation concerning schools was enacted in 1808 by the 
'territorial legislature of Louisiana, June 21, when the legislature, 
sitting at New Orleans, passed an act incorporating St. Genevieve 
Academy. This was the first legally organized school in the territory 
which is now Missouri. 

The principal provisions of the act were that the poor and Indian 
children should be taught free ; that theology should not be taught, and 
that elements of the French and English language should be taught at 
all times. No provisions of any kind were made for raising money by 
taxation, the school having to depend on the donations and tuition for 
its support. 

An Act of 1812, passed by the congress of the United States, 
which created Missouri into a special territory, said: "Schools and 
the means of education shall be encouraged and provided for from the 
public lands of the United States within the territory, as Congress may 
direct." For eight years Missouri remained the separate territory 
under the direction of congress. 

In 1820, when congress framed the act authorizing the formation 
of a constitution for Missouri, it was declared that "schools should be 
forever encouraged in the new state," and that "the legislature shall 
take steps to preserve from waste or damage all lands as have been or 
shall hereafter be granted for the use of schools." The act further 
provided that one or more schools should be established in each con- 
gressional township as soon as necessarj% and that the children of the 
poor should be taught free. 

The same act of congress which admitted Missouri into the Union 
also set apart every sixteenth section of land throughout the state, 
together with seventy-two sections of Saline lands, for school puiposes. 
This made a grand total of 1,254,200 acres of land, which laid the basis 
for the formation of Missouri's school funds. The land had to be sold 
and the proceeds invested before any available income could be acquired 
for the use of schools. 

During the period from 1820 to 1833 there had been established 
about fifty schools, somewhat similar to those that were in operation in 
St. Louis, but no real system of free schools had jet made its appear- 



HISTORY OF LIXN COUNTY 143 

ance. The schools which had been established had to depend wholly 
upon private endowment and private support in the form of donations, 
fees and tuition, and consequently the development was very slow. It 
may be said that the Missouri school system really had its origin in the 
legislature enactment of 1839. At this time the common school fund, 
the county school fund and the township school fund were constituted, 
and permission was granted again for the part of the sixteenth section. 
Here was instituted the permanent school funds of Missouri. By this 
act the office of the state superintendent of common schools was created. 
The law provided that he should be chosen by joint ballot of the senate 
and house of representatives for a term of two years. The superin- 
tendent was required to distribute the state's moneys among the several 
counties of the state where public schools were maintained. The law 
required that this distribution be based upon the number of white chil- 
dren between the ages of 6 and 18 years. 

The Civil War period was a dark one for the infant system of 
public schools. Apportionment of public money was suspended for 
practically the entire period, and nearly all of the public schools were 
closed in 1861. The school money was diverted from its proper use 
and in some instances lost. School buildings were destroyed or 
seriously damaged. The office of state superintendent was once more 
suspended and the beginnings of a school system completely disor- 
ganized. In some localities thrifty farmers maintained schools for 
three or four months in the year by forming a sort of community and 
apportioning the expenses among themselves. In a few towns an effort 
was made to keep up the schools, but in a general way they were failures, 
so that private schools had to be established on a tuition or subscription 
basis. 

With the termination of the war, however, and the general reor- 
ganization of the system, the schools of Missouri were re-established. 
Competent teachers were in demand and the system traveled onward 
and upward to its present high standing of efficiency. 

In his excellent work, entitled "Civil Government," Perry S. Rader 
has presented some of the present school laws applicable to rural com- 
munities in a clear, terse form. They will be found of interest to 
school boards and patrons, and are as follows : 

Common School Districts — Whenever there are twenty children 
between 6 and 20 years of age, in any locality not organized into a 
school district, the voters thereof are authorized to organize such a 
district, which may be irregular in shape and contain any number of 
children of school age above twenty. If the unorganized territory con- 



144 HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 

tains less than twenty children, it may be added to any adjoining dis- 
trict. New districts may also be formed by dividing those already 
organized. But that cannot be done unless each of the districts affected, 
including the one to be formed, contains as many as twenty children of 
school age. 

In each common school district there are three directors and at 
least one school house and one teacher. 

A rural school having six directors is classified as a consolidated 
school district. A district having six directors in which is a city of the 
fourth class or an incorporated village is classed as a town school. A 
district in which is a city of the first, second or third class is classified 
as a city school. 

Annual Meeting — The law authorizes all the legal voters of a 
common school district to meet on the first Tuesday of April of each 
year, and (1) to elect by ballot one director for three years; (2) to 
determine the length of the school term for the next year in excess of 
eight months, and (3) the rate they will tax themselves in excess of 40 
cents on the hundred dollars' valuation, if any, for maintaining the 
school ; and if the district has no school house, or desires a new one, to 
vote (4) for the erection of such a house, and to determine (5) on what 
amount they will further tax themselves for such purpose ; (6) to decide 
on changes of the boundaries of the district, and (7) to vote (once in 
four years) for a county school superintendent; and to transact othei* 
business. 

School Boards — The school board of a common school district con- 
sists of three directors, e^ch of whom holds office for three years, one 
being elected each year. A director must be a citizen of the United 
States, a resident taxpayer, a qualified voter of the district, and must 
have paid a state and county tax within one year next preceding his 
election. A director of any school must possess these qualifications. 

Powers of School Board — (1) The school board is required to make 
rules and regulations for the government of the school. If it fails to 
do so, the teacher can make such rules or enforce those made for a 
previous teacher. (2) It is required to continue the school for eight 
months in each year, if a tax of 40 cents on the hundred dollars' val- 
uation and the district's share of the other school funds will suffice to 
pay the expenses of such term ; if the funds in its hands will be sufficient 
for a longer term, it can continue the schools as many months as it may 
deem wise. (3) If the annual meeting has authorized the building of 
a school house it can issue and sell bonds of the district to obtain money 
for such building, and may direct a levy upon the property of the district 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 145 

to pay these bonds. (4) It is required to employ legally qualified 
teachers. The contract must be signed by the teacher and the president 
of the board and attested by the clerk. But no contract is binding 
unless the teacher holds a teacher's certificate, which must be in force 
for the full term for which the contract is made ; and no teacher can be 
discharged when once employed till such certificate is revoked by the 
county superintendent. And these are the powers of school boards in 
all districts. 

Taxation and Length of School Term — It is the policy of the law to 
maintain a school for at least eight months each year in each school 
district, and whether or not there will be a longer term often depends 
on the voters themselves. The taxpayers in each district are by law 
compelled to submit to a tax of 40 cents on each hundred dollars of the 
assessed valuation of all property in the district, for employing teachers 
and paying the incidental expenses of the school, unless a less tax rate, 
together with the district's share of the various public school funds, 
will be sufficient to maintain a school for eight months. If a less rate, 
together with the district's share of the public funds, will yield enough 
to maintain an eight months' term, the board may make the tax rate 
any sum it pleases less than 40 cents. The board is bound to levy a 
rate of 40 cents if that sum is necessary to maintain an eight months' 
school. And the board can levy 40 cents, without consulting the tax- 
payers, even though that rate would provide for a nine or ten months* 
term. But it cannot exceed that rate unless a majority of the tax- 
payers authorize it to do so, and then it must fix the rate at such sum 
as they direct. 

This rate of 40 cents applies to all districts in the state except in 
those in cities having one hundred thousand inhabitants or more, where 
the rate is 60 cents on the hundred dollars' valuation instead of 40. 

These are the rates that the boards may fix without consulting the 
taxpayers, but in all rural districts the rate may be increased to 65 
cents on the hundred dollars ' valuation by a majority of the taxpaying 
voters, and in all city or town districts to 100 cents. These are the tax 
rates for "school purposes," which mean the employment of teachers, 
paying janitors, buying fuel, and "incidental expenses." The money 
raised for school purposes can not be used for building a school house 
or for paying interest on a permanent debt or for any other purpose. 

Taxation for School Houses — Any school district may contract a 
debt for school houses, furniture or building sites. And the property 
within the district must be taxed to pay the debt. And in addition to 
the tax to pay that debt, the property within the district may be further 



146 HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 

taxed to create a fund to build other houses. It may be taxed for one 
or both of these purposes just as the voters direct. 

But no district can create a debt or authorize such a tax until two- 
thirds of the qualified voters of the district voting at an election 
authorize it. The vote may be taken at an annual school meeting or a 
special election, but in either case two-thirds of the voters voting at an 
election must vote "for the loan" before it can be legally charged 
against the district. If that is done, then thereafter the school board 
must annually levy such a tax as will pay the interest as it accrues, and 
they must also levj^ such a tax, not to exceed 40 cents on the hundred 
doflars' valuation, as will pay the debt itself within twenty years. But 
the debt of a district can at no time be increased if that then existing 
equals 5 per cent of the assessed valuation of all property within the 
district. 

But after having created a debt equal to 5 per cent, the patrons of 
a school may yet want other school house room. Suppose after the 
district has voted a loan equal to 5 per cent and built a school house, 
the school house burns down without insurance ; its taxpayers, of course, 
must be taxed to pay that loan ; or suppose the voters do not wish their 
district to go in debt for a school house; or suppose after authorizing 
a loan they find that it will not build quite so good a house as they need. 
In any such case, a fund for building purposes may be created when 
two-thirds of the qualified voters of the district vote for a tax for that 
purpose, which cannot exceed 65 cents in rural schools, and 100 cents in 
city or town schools, but this tax can be voted for only one year at a 
time, but may be voted each succeeding year. It can be levied for no 
year unless two-thirds of the voters authorize its levy for that year. 
But the tax to pay a loan, when once authorized, must be levied by the 
board each year until the entire debt is paid. 

Thus we see the taxes for all school purposes may be less than 40 
cents on the hundred dollars, and may by the majority of the taxpayers 
in a city or town school be raised to 100 cents for current "school pur- 
poses," and by two-thirds of the voters be raised to 40 cents more to 
pay debts for building purposes, and in the same way may be yet raised 
to 100 cents more for buildings. 

The Public School Fund — There is a permanent endowment of the 
public schools of the entire state which is by the Constitution called the 
"Public School Fund." It amounts to more than $3,000,000 and only 
the annual income therefrom can be used for the support of the schools. 
It had its origin in an act of congress dated June 13, 1812, the passage 
of which was secured largely by Thomas F. Eiddick, an honored citizen 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 147 

of Missouri, who rode on horseback all the way to Washington to 
persuade congressmen to support the measure. That act and other 
subsequent acts of congress gave to Missouri certain saline and swamp 
lands lying within her borders, to be sold and the proceeds to be turned 
into the state treasury, to be invested by the state and the income to be 
used for public schools. To this fund have also been added certain 
fines and forfeitures, and unclaimed escheats. Sometimes it occurs 
that persons without known or ascertainable heirs die without wills, 
leaving estates. The proceeds of such estates are turned into the state 
treasury, and if not claimed within twenty years are transferred to the 
public school fund. 

Legislative Appropriations — The Constitution provides that at 
least one-fourth of the ordinary state revenues shall be appropriated 
for the use of public schools. Since 1887 the legislature has appropri- 
ated one-third of the revenues to this purpose. The entire amount 
annually turned over to the schools from these appropriations and from 
the interest on the state public school fund is about $1,500,000 and is 
equal to over $1.80 for every child of school age in the state. This 
money is apportioned to the various counties by the state superintendent 
of public schools according to the number of teachers and according to 
the number of days all the children have attended school during the past 
year, and each county's share is by the county clerk divided up among 
the school districts of the county in the same proportion, and the money 
turned over to the county treasurer and by him paid out to teachers. 
By this means the state aids the whole state to have public schools, but 
especially counties of small taxable wealth. There are twenty-five 
counties in the state that get more money from this source for their 
schools than they pay into the state treasury for all purposes. 

In 1890 the school enumeration of Missouri was 856,744, and the 
expenditures for that year were $5,561,056.29, or $6.52 per pupil. In 
1910 the enumeration had increased to 1,005,434, and the expenditures 
to $13,905,188.80, or $13.86 per pupil. 

The first money appropriated to building a school house in Linn 
county was on May 3, 1858. For this purpose $106.59 was drawn from 
the general expenditure fund, set apart for that object, and the money 
given to Mr. Harper and others to use. Previous to this appropriation 
most of the school houses in the county were made of logs, erected by 
the patrons. According to the sixty-fifth annual apportionment made 
by the state superintendent of public schools, July 31, 1911, Linn county 
had an enumeration of 7,030, and its apportionment of the school moneys 
was $12,750.44. 



148 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

The first state school money received by Linn county was in Jan- 
nary, 1847. The amount was $51.43. 

The following school statistics of Linn county are from the report 
of E. L. Joyce, county superintendent of public schools, the report 
being for the annual school year ending June 30, 1911 : 

Enrollment: White— Male, 2,959; female, 3,109; total, 6,068. 
Colored — Male, 64; female, 79; total, 143; grand total, 6,211. 

Number of districts in county enrolling less than 15 pupils, 78 ; 15 
and less than 25, 42 ; 25 and less than 40, 39 ; 40 and less than 60, 11 ; 
more than 60, 9. 

Number of districts in county having an average attendance less 
than 10, 8 ; 10 and less than 15, 21 ; 15 and less than 25, 51 ; 25 and less 
than 40, 20 ; more than 40, 9. 

Total number of days' attendance by all pupils, 704,593; average 
daily attendance, 4,367. 

Average length of school term in days, 149; number trees planted 
on Arbor Day, . 

Number schools in county having less than four months, ; having 
four and less than six months, 3 ; having six and less than eight months, 
46 ; having eight months, 55 ; having more than eight months, 5. 

Number of pupils that may be seated in public schools — White, 
7,766; colored, 50; total, 7,816. 

Number of pupils graduating in state course of study — Male, 23; 
female 56 ; total, 79. 

Number of districts in county having libraries, 100; volumes in 
libraries, 11,720; value of libraries, $5,570; volumes added this year, 
700 ; number of districts that complied with the library law this year, 50. 

Number of teachers holding life state certificates, 5 ; limited state 
certificates, 2; normal diplomas, 13; normal certificates, 3; county 
certificates, 161. 

Number of teachers holding county certificates — First grade, 58; 
second grade, 42 ; third grade, 60 ; special, 1. 

Number of teachers employed in the county: White — Male, 41; 
female, 139; total, 180. Colored — Male, 2; female, 2; total, 4; grand 
total, 184. 

Buildings: Number of school houses in county — White, 114; col- 
ored, 4 ; total, 118. Number of school rooms occupied in county — White, 
177; colored, 4; total, 181. 

Amount paid for teachers' wages — Male, $16,859.25; female, $47,- 
122.65; total, $63,981.93. 



HISTORY OF LIN^ COUNTY U9 

Average salaries of teachers per month — Male, $51.05; female, 
$40.67 ; general average, $45.86. 

Amount spent for incidentals — Clerks, $949.50; janitors, $4,182.75; 
fuel, $4,501.11; library, $895; all other expenses, $7,809.16; total, 
$18,305.64. 

Number of school houses built during year, 2; amount spent for 
building, $2,000 ; spent for repairs, $2,082.60. 

Number of school houses in county valued at less than $300, 1; 
value from $300 to $600, 66 ; value more than $600, 51. 

Estimated value of school property, $2,305.75; assessed value of 
the taxable property, $10,444,000. 

Bonds voted this year, ; bonds paid, $4,475.20 ; present indebted- 
ness, $56,801. 

The following sketches of some of the Linn county schools are 
taken from The Twenty-fifth Anniversary Edition of The Linn Count if 
Neivs, D. B. Ormiston, editor and proprietor: 

Meadville School: The beautiful little city of Meadville is one of 
the oldest towns in North Missouri — it being a prosperous little town 
even before the Burlington railroad was built. The Meadville public 
schools have thus had a long and honorable history. 

From the early days of Squire Harvey and the one-room school 
until the present time, with its modern finely equipped building, and 
half dozen teachers, the school has done excellent work and sent many 
young men and women to lives of success and usefulness. 

During the recent years great improvements have been made in 
the building and grounds. The entire school had been reseated with 
single desks, the walls have been redecorated — slate blackboards, every- 
thing modern and convenient. A broad granitoid walk was laid the en- 
tire distance of both sides of the beautiful wood grounds. Nearly three 
hundred and fifty fine new books have been added to the library, and 
some physical apparatus for scientific work. 

One thing that has done much to keep the Meadville schools up to 
a high standard is the progressive policy of the school board. That 
policy has been that when they find a good teacher to keep him or her at 
any cost. The average salary paid in the Meadville schools is the high- 
est of any school in the county. That the people in that vicinity appre- 
ciate this school is well attested by the large outside attendance. An 
additional half year's work has been added to the high school, making 
a full four year's course. The state university high school examiner 
has consented to accept the school grades in all work done. 

Among other interesting and progressive features of the high 



150 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

school work is a fine stereopticon with about five hundred slides, which 
is used in connection with the history and literature courses. 

Marceline School — The people of Marceline are justly proud of 
the Marceline public school system. A good school is always evidence 
of a good w^holesome school spirit. This school spirit is almost a mania 
with the citizens of Marceline. 

The board of education, owing to the youthfulness of the town, has 
always been handicapped for want of sufficient finance to properly care 
for the rapidly increasing enrollment in the schools. 

Some years ago Marceline 's five hundred and twenty school chil- 
dren were crowded into one ten-room building and were taught by 
twelve teachers, including the superintendent. The following spring 
the board of education seeing that another building was imperative, 
submitted a proposition to the people to bond the school district to the 
limit of the law for the purpose of erecting another building. The 
proposition was carried almost unanimously, and a splendid brick build- 
ing was erected. 

In order to provide teachers for this new building the people were 
asked to increase the tax levy to the limit, which they did with but two 
dissenting votes. 

The school enumeration has continued to increase with unabating 
energy. The last enumeration gives the army of school children in 
Marceline a total of thirteen hundred thirty-six. To care for about nine 
hundred of these the board of education has employed twenty teachers 
this year. The board insists upon a high standard of qualification 
among its teachers. This is evidenced by the fact that of the twenty 
teachers now employed, thirteen have had Normal school training and 
five have had university training. They are all of the progressive, wide 
awake kind who seek to keep in touch with the best educators of the 
state. Half of our teachers spent their vacation in school this summer. 
Six were in Kirksville State Normal School, three in the Missouri 
University, and one in the University of Minnesota. 

The growth of Marceline high school has been phenomenal. The 
school has a good reference library, a good working laboratory in 
physics and physical geography, and one hundred ten students were 
enrolled the first week of school this year. 

The enthusiasm and energy of the student body and faculty is such 
that it inculcates in the minds of the students a desire for higher learn- 
ing, and they leave our high school as graduates to go to college. Forty- 
five per cent of the graduates of last year are in college this year. 

Marceline public school system is destined to be one among the 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 151 

best in the state, for everybody works for the good of the schools in 
Marceline. 

L. A. M. 

Browning School — The Browning high school is located in the city 
of Browning, which is composed of 1,000 inhabitants. Browning is on 
the Chicago, Burlington & Kansas City Railroad in the Locust valley 
on the boundary line between Linn and Sullivan counties. 

The school, with good roller wall maps and a good reference 
library, has during the past maintained a three-year high school with 
two approved high school teachers. Below the high school there are 
four teachers for the elementary school, or eight grades. 

Many students from the surrounding rural districts attend the 
high school and several the elementary school each year. 

This year we hope to add many new volumes to the library, so that 
the work in all the departments will be strengthened more than ever 
before. 

Laclede School — The Laclede school has made, for several years 
past, a steady progress, until today it is one of the leading schools of 
Linn county. In 1901 a splendid new building was erected, and at the 
present time the school property is valued at $18,000. The board made 
many improvements on the school property the past summer and are 
planning for a number of others the coming year, among which are a 
new laboratory in the basement for agriculture, and perhaps chemistry, 
and new single seats for the assembly hall and room No. 1. 

The course of study offered is equal to that of the leading schools 
of the state. Both music and drawing are taught in the grades, and it 
is hoped that a room may be fitted up in the near future for the teaching 
of manual training. The Laclede high school offers a complete three- 
year course, and with three teachers devoting full time to high school 
work it is expected that the high school will be accredited for fifteen 
imits by the university soon. The following courses are offered : The 
four-year Latin or classical courses; a scientific course, which offers 
three units of science — agriculture, physics and physical geography — 
and two years of German; an English course, offering four years of 
history, and an elective course, which offers bookkeeping and business 
arithmetic, and five units selected from the other courses. 

The school library, which is steadily growing, contains several hun- 
dred volumes of the best reference books in English, history and 
science. A new stereopticon was purchased recently and is now nicely 
installed with 500 slides in history, literature, and science. The school 



152 HISTORY OF LINN COUXTY 

is supplied with the necessary teaching facilities in all departments, 
and with the expenditure of a few hundred dollars more for improve- 
ments will be one of the best equipped in this part of the state. 

Athletics have been encouraged though not to excess, and at the 
present time the basket ball and foot ball teams are practicing daily. 
A fine school spirit exists among both pupils and patrons. The people 
of Laclede and community are proud of their school 

Linneus School — This handsome building was constructed in the 
year 1902 at a total cost of $13,500.00, which includes the seating and 
heating apparatus. It is a much better structure than is usually seen 
in towns of the size of Linneus, as its plans were drawn with the view 
to economy, convenience and hygiene, as well as to architectural sym- 
metry. It is built of pressed brick, with slate roof, and it stands in a 
commanding position near the center of a four-acre tract at the eastern 
edge of the city. On the school grounds grow several kinds of forest 
trees, and ample room is afforded for a commodious and pleasing play- 
ground for the pupils. 

In the basement are the furnace rooms for the steam heating 
mechanism, toilet rooms, storage closets, etc. The first floor contains 
three recitation rooms and the chemical laboratory. On the second floor 
are four commodious recitation rooms. All the rooms are finely lighted 
by large windows, and the interior walls are finished in soft gray color 
which is restful to the eyes. Any room in the building may be entered 
without disturbing the occupants of any other room. 

The chemical laboratory is fully equipped with apparatus and chemi- 
cals for doing the first year's work in elementary chemistry. In the 
library are over 400 carefully selected volumes. The books are classi- 
fied and catalogued by the card index system, and a librarian has 
charge. The library is largely the result of the efforts of a lecture 
course committee which undertook the work about two years ago. 

All the teachers in the high school, and part of them in the 
*' grades" are graduates of a normal school or college. The others are 
teachers of long experience and recognized ability. We confidently 
believe that all the teachers in our public schools are fittingly prepared 
to do most excellent work. 

A new course of study which consists of twelve grades has been 
adopted. Four years will be required to complete the work in the high 
school. It will consist of four j^ears of history, four years of English, 
three years of mathematics and one of science, and four j^ears of Latin. 
The "grade work" will consist of the same amount of work usually 
alloted to the first eiglit years of school work. 



HISTORY OF LINX COUNTY 153 

The school now has the required number of teachers to do the 
above work. 

Following compose the faculty: E. J. Powell, superintendent; 
Anna R. Miller, English and history; Eolean Berger, Latin and mathe- 
matics ; Susie C. Ormiston, assistant Latin and music ; Minnie Trippeer, 
seventh and eighth grades; May Belle D. Symons, fifth and sixth 
grades ; Susie V. Betson, third and fourth grades ; Martha E. Dryden, 
first and second grades. 

Members of the school board : A. W. Mullins, A. J. Betson, H. E. 
Symons, W. B. McGregor, G. W. Anderson and W. E. Forman. 

The colored students have a comfortable and commodious frame 
building in the western part of the city. The instructor is Mary 
Frazier. 

Purdin School — In the midst of one of the most fertile spots of 
Linn county is situated the city of Purdin. It has all of the environ- 
ment for a progressive town, and its people have taken the advantage 
of every opportunity to make it the best town of its size in the state. 

In the southern portion of the city, away from the noise of the 
business section, stands the public school building. It is surrounded 
by the large and well arranged baseball, football, basketball courts and 
other games are indulged in, much to the pleasure and the profit of 
students. 

The purpose and aim of the school is to do the very best work in 
the course it undertakes. The course of the Purdin school is better 
than ever before. It affiliates with the large schools of the county and 
receives from them a credit for all the work done. The working library 
includes cyclopaedias and reference works, and supplementary work 
for every class in every grade. 

The students of the upper grades, and those of the high school, 
have formed themselves into a literary society which meets semi- 
monthly in the public school building. The teachers are honorary mem- 
bers and attend all meetings. 

Purdin school has non-residents, about one-half of whom drive 
from their homes each day, while the weather is good. 

The graduating class of 1912 consists of a body of students, a num- 
ber of whom came especially for the advanced work which is being 
offered. On the whole, a more enthusiastic body of students cannot be 
found in the county. Purdin people are justly proud of their public 
school. 



154 HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 

County Spelling Match 

An imusually interesting feature in connection with the public 
school work was a county spelling match, held at Laclede, April 26. 
This was a part of a plan, statewide in its scope, to find the best speller 
among the public school students of the state. While the fact that there 
was going to be a spelling campaign was duly announced by the state 
school authorities, yet the papers containing the rules and other neces- 
sary information concerning the contest did not reach County Superin- 
tendent E. L. Joyce until late in February. This cut the time of prepar- 
ation very short. Other counties had been able to begin their township 
and district matches in December. However, Mr. Joyce immediately 
began on the big undertaking of finding Linn county's champion speller. 
Local matches were held at various places, and finally some thirty con- 
testants appeared for the county match at Laclede. The contestants 
were pretty equally divided as between boys and girls. The spelling 
was confined to the adopted text book, the words being all written by the 
contestants. During the three hours of the match something like 1,000 
words were given. The champion was '* Jack" Rummell, a pupil in the 
first ward or Hickman school, Brookfield. He is a son of Mr. and Mrs. 
L. W. Rummell, and was only 14 at the time of the match. In winning 
the county and district match *'Jack" received two good suits of 
clothes as prizes. His record was perfect in both matches. 

Ruth Benson, aged fourteen, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Gus Ben- 
son, received the second prize at the county match, a handsome spring 
jacket. She is a student of the Warner district school. 

Considering the extremely bad weather, the shortness of the notice 
and the immensity of the undertaking, Mr. Joyce expressed the opinion 
that the schools made an excellent showing. He says that the spelling 
campaign created enthusiasm in every town and district, and was very 
beneficial on the general school work. However, in order that a county 
spelling match may be had with more deliberateness, and under more 
favorable circumstances, he has in mind the holding of another one at a 
convenient season, possibly in the spring of 1913. 

"I heartily approve of any plan designed to increase interest in 
spelling," said Mr. Joyce, "and I believe that spelling contests are 
always productive of increased interest in school work generally. Good 
spelling always goes with a good education." 



CHAPTER XIII 

The Press of Linn County — In 1875 There Were But Two Papers — In 
1912 There Are Eleven — High Character of Publications — H. J. 
Wigginton on ''Journalism" — Bishop Marvin's Terse Description 
of a Friend — Faults of Some Newspaper Men — Sketch of Linn 
County's First Publisher — A Pioneer Editor and Printer — Worked 
Alongside of "Mark Tivain"- — Went on a "Frolic" That Lasted 
Four Years- — Original Country Correspondent Lives in Linn 
County — Reported Sensational Murder Case — The Brookfield Ga- 
zette — The Linneus Bulletin — The Linn County News — The Linn 
County Budget — The Brookfield Argus — Marceline Papers (See 
History Marceline). 

According to an old history of Linn county there were but two 
papers in the county in 1875, the Linneus Bulletin and the Brookfield 
Gazette. The former was established by Thomas E. Brawner in 1859, 
and the latter paper by R. Channing Moore on April 23, 1867. Both 
papers are in successful operation today imder their original names. 
But there are more competitors in the field now. In Brookfield there 
are the Gazette, Argus and Budget. In Linneus the Bulletin and the 
Linn County News. In Marceline are the Mirror and the Journal. 
Then there are the Bucklin Herald, the Laclede Blade, the Meadville 
Messenger and the Browning Leader-Record — eleven in all. 

These papers evidence the growth of the county, and reflect the 
enterprise and ambition of the people. Nearly all of them were started 
under primitive conditions, and lived for years on hope, a hope that 
has been abundantly realized by those who worked and waited with 
patience. 

The Linn county press stands at the head of its profession. No- 
where in the west are there more ably edited or better printed papers. 
Brookfield and Linneus have set the pace for handsome typographical 
arrangement in their papers, and the press of the other towns have 
followed. The truth is, there are few metropolitan newspapers that 
equal the mechanical style of the Linn county publications. The printer 
who examines them will readily admit that. 

Not long since H. J. Wigginton, editor and publisher of the Linneus 

155 



156 HISTORY OF hlXN COUXTY 

Bulletin, wrote an editorial on journalism, which so well illustrates the 
idea of the profession in Linn county that some extracts are reproduced 
here: 

"I wish to say by way of introduction, that the people of Linn 
county are a reading people, intelligent, prosperous and happy. In 
addition to their liberal patronage of libraries, periodicals and the daily 
press, they give substantial support to eleven weekly newspapers, and 
recognize them as valuable factors in the promotion of the common 
good. Concerning the profession of journalism, I take pleasure in here 
presenting the following opinions: 

"There is dignity in all honest labor, commensurate with its use- 
fulness to humanity. That journalism is labor can be proved b\' a 
host of witnesses experienced in the profession. There is not, perhaps, 
a member of the profession in Linn county who would not modestly 
admit that it is honest labor and that two of the leading characteristics 
of the journalists are honesty and truthfulness. In none of life's avoca- 
tions are the truth and purity of one's words more safely guarded than 
in the field of journalism. The orator may change the color of former 
utterances. The talebearer may flatly deny, the pulpit, in the absence 
of a reporter, may escape rigid adverse judgment, but the journalist, 
by means of the 'art preservative,' puts his opinions down in black 
and white to stand the scrutiny of friend and foe alike. 

"From the printed page there is no appeal. All journalists well 
understand the meaning of that old hero of sacred history who, when 
pressed hard by his accusing enemy, and seeking some means of re- 
course, cried out in bitter extremity of soul, ' 0, that mine enemy would 
write a book!' 

"It is dangerous for bad men to write books or issue newspapers. 
Type cannot afford to lie. When it does, the evil consequences recoil 
upon its own head. I believe that in most cases when the journalist 
lowers the dignity of his profession by misrepresentation or otherwise, 
the fault is of the judgment and not the heart. In this fact alone, how- 
ever, there is little comfort; because successful journalism is born of 
the virtues of both heart and head. Industry, honesty and truthfulness 
are invaluable material in the temple of journalistic dignity, but they 
alone can never make a journalist. Combine them with common sense, 
keen discernment and discretion, and a heart that beats in sympathy 
with the great heart of struggling humanity, and you will have a tower 
of dignity and strength against which the prince of error himself 
cannot prevail. 

' ' Bishop Marvin, in speaking of the virtues of a friend, once said : 



HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 157 

'He is as good as he knows how to be, and he knows how as well as 
any man God ever made.' The knowing how accounted, perhaps, for 
the biggest end of the goodness. The journalist must know the real 
dignity and worth of his work, and he must know how to impress them 
upon the community in which his paper circulates. 

"There are some country newspapers that insist upon putting the 
profession before their readers in the attitude of a hugh joke. They 
prate about the journal's lack of veracity, of his half-clothed, half- 
starved condition until many of their readers actually believe that the 
whole profession is made up of liars and mendicants. I once saw the 
following in an exchange : ' Friends, a little help would be appreciated 
very much — can't you bring us some sweet potatoes or corn An editor 
once choked himself to death trying to eat grass.' 

' ' Such pleas are painfully pathetic ; only because of the utter fail- 
ure of their attempt to be humorous. The sooner this style of journal- 
ism 'chokes down on grass' the better for the profession. Published 
appeals to delinquents for pay in either cash or produce are in bad 
taste, especially if persisted in. They usually annoy the good patron 
more than the class for whom they are intended, and they also make 
the business appear cramped and unstable. It is true that no man un- 
der heaven comes nearer earning one hundred cents on the dollar for 
his time and investment than does the faithful country journalist ; but 
he should collect those earnings in a businesslike way, by individual 
statements, and without afflicting his paper with a perpetual begging 
for that which is due him. 

"Another menace to the dignity of the press is its too frequent 
abuse of its privilege to compliment and censure. We forget that every 
editorial opinion should bear upon its face the stamp of cool, deliberate 
thought and earnest, honest conviction ; and that for neither love nor 
money can an editor afford to let the sincerity of his opinions be ques- 
tioned. We forget that there is lack of dignity in flattery. Every com- 
pliment unworthily bestowed by a journalist weakens his power to com- 
pliment the worthy. The journalist who persists in 'roasting' those 
whose rights to differ from him he holds in question, soon paralyzes the 
power of his own pen to do further injury, and, if he escapes the shot- 
gun, falls a victim to the venoin of his own words. There is beauty in 
dignified discussion; but newspaper quarrels are detestable. Bitter 
words and harsh insinuations indicate jealousies and kindred weak- 
nesses. Such journalism is self-destructive and on the decline. With 
the coming age of journalistic schools, such as we have now at the 
Missouri University, let us hope that it will become practically extinct. 



158 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

The true journalist enters bravely and heartily into the work of assist- 
ing humanity onward and upward and speaks his words of courage and 
counsel from a sympathetic and generous heart. He recognizes the 
fact that the lives of individuals and nations are moulded by the quality 
of their thinking; and that it is the high privilege of the journalist to 
train the tastes of his readers away from the morbid contemplation 
of life's dark pictures and help them to see the beauties and the glories 
of the bright side of things. With his pen he draws the pictures that 
are to be ideal suggestions to young and old alike. He begins with 
the impressible mind of the child and continues to influence its thought 
until, dim-eyed with age, it lays aside its glasses to listen with eager 
ear while children and grandchildren read aloud to him the family 
newspaper. It is an influence that reaches from life's opening dawn 
unto its evening twilight. 

' ' Today journalism stands upon the summit of its past achievement 
and, looking eastward, heralds the dawning of that still grander day 
when the peace spirit shall pervade the entire earth — when, indeed 

" 'Night's candles are burnt out and jocund morn 
Stands tiptoe on the misty mountain tops.' " 

Linn county's pioneer newspaper man, Thomas E. Brawner, was 
born in Richmond, Kentucky, in 1836, and came with the family to 
Missouri when he was only a year old. In 1850 Mr. Brawner entered 
the office of the Brunswicker as an apprentice. The paper was conducted 
by John H. Blue. While learning the printing trade, young Brawner 
also attended the seminary at Brunswick. In 1852 he went to Columbia 
and secured employment with the Statesman, a paper founded by the 
late Col. William F. Switzler, one of Missouri's best known journalists 
and historians. It was the association with this eminent man, then in 
the prime of his powers, that inspired young Brawner to take a step 
higher in journalism. He went to Milan, Sullivan county in 1857 and 
started the Milan Farmer. After demonstrating his capacity as an 
editor and publisher at Milan, Mr. Brawner was induced to move to 
Linneus, then the leading town of the county in all matters. He estab- 
lished the Linneus Bulletin, of which paper he was editor and publisher 
until his retirement from journalism, on account of ill health, in 1888. 

When the Civil War came on Mr. Brawner severed his connection 
with the Bulletin in order to enter the army. In 1871 he resumed the 
publication of the Bulletin, and continued until his retirement, in the 
year mentioned. 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 159 

Mr. Brawner was always a Democrat of pronounced type, even 
during his service with the U. S. army. He was a man of unusual 
energy and ability and labored night and day to make the Bulletin a 
power in the upbuilding of Linn county and the state. Mr. Brawner 
was married three times. 

Among the pioneer editors and printers of northern Missouri was 
Maj. Frank M. Dalton, who, until quite recently, came to Brookfield 
once a year to visit his sister-in-law, Mrs. Mary Dalton, and his nieces, 
Mrs. N. E. Wanamaker and Mrs. Sue Crainer. Major Dalton was born 
in Ralls county, Missouri, May 27, 1832, and at the time of the publica- 
tion of this history was operating a country paper in Rector, Arkansas. 

On one of his visits to Brookfield Major Dalton described his long 
experience as a newspaper man, and told some things which are illus- 
trative of early day journalism. 

"Some of the more important county seat papers in Missouri 
before the Civil War had only about 300 circulation," said Major 
Dalton. "It took a long while to get off even that small an edition 
on the old hand press. Every page of the paper was rolled by hand. 
A roller boy would stand between his ink slab — which was sometimes 
the reverse side of a tombstone — and the press. And as each paper 
was 'pulled' he would put on a fresh supply. The pressman laid on 
the sheets, and pulled around the big lever. Crude as the method was, 
it was regarded by the people of the old days as a most interesting 
sight, and they would often ride to town on press day to see the 
machine work and to take home a copy of the paper. We got $2.00 
a year for the paper in those days, and would take anything for it that 
we could use — cord wood, corn, potatoes, tobacco, yarn gloves — any- 
thing. In one office where I worked we sent the paper for two years 
to a man who furnished us a large, smooth tombstone which he had 
taken from the grave of one of his relatives, who, he said, wouldn't 
need it any more." 

Like most Missouri printers of his time. Major Dalton had worked 
at Hannibal with Mark Twain, and after he became famous Mr. 
Clemens sent his old comrade of the print-shop a copy of every book 
he wrote. Speaking of his career in Hannibal Major Dalton said: 

"I never saw anything in particular about Sam that made me 
think he would be a great man. He and I worked together on the 
old Hannibal Union, which was run by Orion, Sam's elder brother. 
I was a typesetter there and saw a great deal of Sam. If I were asked 
to pick out the brightest one of the boys it would have been Henry. 
Sam was a rollicking, devil-may-care sort of fellow, more given to 



160 HISTORY OF LIXN COUXTY 

pranks and jokes than to work. A large part of the copy that was 
handed in to us printers was reprint from Eastern magazines. I 
remember now that they were turning out some excellent literary 
matter in those days, and I set a lot of it up in the Union office. It 
may have been that Sam received an inspiration from some of these 
magazine articles which were passed to him as copy. If we had only 
known it there was a world of material for humorous country stories 
in those days, but Sam was the only one who seemed to remember it, 
and he put those stories on paper long afterwards and became famous. 

^'The only original matter in the Union, outside of a few personal 
items, was the leader or chief editorial. Orion always wrote that him- 
self. As I recollect it Orion was a very serious writer, and I presume 
he carried a certain amount of influence in Hannibal. 

''In those days of early journalism the editor and the printer 
were about the same thing. The editor generally set up his own copy, 
and often he would change it a good deal at the case. He was afraid 
that if it would go into the hands of some journeyman printer it might 
not measure up to what he had intended. The editorials were the big 
feature with the editor. He thought that everything he wrote was 
acted upon by the big wide world, and the truth is, I think the people 
did pay more attention to editorials than they do now. There were 
not so many things to divert their minds and the country newspaper 
was read and seriously pondered by every member of the family. ' ' 

The only interruption that ever occurred in his life as editor and 
printer was when the war came on. Major Dalton was publishing a 
paper at Edina, and doing fairly well. He was a Southern sympathizer, 
but never regarded himself as a fighting man. It so happened, how- 
ever, that in his town there were two companies of soldiers drilling 
daily. One of these companies intended to join the Union army and 
the other was organizing for the purpose of going South. The people 
were very much concerned for fear that the two companies would get 
to fighting with each other before they left town. When Col. Martin 
Green organized a regiment over in Lewis county, the Edina Confed- 
erate company was ordered to report to him. As soon as the company 
left the Union company, under command of Col. David Moore, set out 
to prevent its joining Colonel Green. Major Dalton learned of this 
and he managed to convey to the commander of the Confederate com- 
pany the trap that was being laid for him. The Confederate captain 
was so well pleased with the lad for bringing him the information that 
he prevailed upon him to join the company, stating that they were 
only going out for a little frolic and that the war would soon be over. 



HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 161 

That little frolic lasted four years, and wlien it was over Major 
Dalton went back to the printing business, resuming where he had 
left off. 



It will be a matter of some interest to those who weekly read the 
county letters in the newspapers to know that the originator of that 
custom is a resident of Linn county. His name is I. Jeff Buster, and 
he still retains keen interest in all that the boys of the press are doing- 
today. The inspiration for Mr. Buster's idea came in 1866. In those 
days, as Major Dalton said, the average newspaper editor thought the 
important thing to print was heavy editorials, literary clippings and 
foreign telegrams. As a rule but comparatively small space was given 
to happenings around home — they were too trivial. 

In his young days Mr, Buster was a regular attendant at the 
Friday night lyceum in the district school at Kaseyville, Macon county. 
The general program was to debate on all sorts of big subjects, just 
as the newspapers were eternally soliloquizing on something far be- 
yond them. Mr. Buster decided one night to vary the rule. He pre- 
pared a paper which he called ' ' The Neighborhood News. ' ' Every 
event, large or small, that had occurred in the vicinity during the week 
was found in Mr. Buster's paper. It told about the new babies, the 
deaths, weddings, crops, the new bell on the village church, or the 
recent damages to the farmers' crops on the creek bottoms, about the 
wreck of a rail fence by the wind, the old cow that ''had its leg to get 
broke, ' ' and which, if you are still a reader of the county news letter, 
is happening regularly every week just as it was in I. Jeff's time. 

That paper created a sensation. It did more. It made Mr. Buster 
the leading man of the community. Kaseyville voted the production 
the most interesting event that had ever occurred in the history of its 
lyceum. 

Following the natural trend of things, it occurred to Mr. Buster 
if the paper was good to read to the community at Kasejwille, it might 
be of still greater interest if printed in a newspaper. He mailed his 
manuscript to Macon. Col. Clark Green was running the Macon Times. 
The colonel read the news from Kaseyville and promptly pigeon-holed 
it until Mr. Buster should send him stamps to pay the freight back home. 
He didn't intend to load up his paper with a lot of neighborhood gossip. 
What he wanted was wars and rumors of wars ; what they were doing 
over there at Washington; stories of earthquakes in the Sandwich 
Islands and the revolutions in Chili and Peru. In other words, the 



162 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

country editor was featuring pretty much the same thing that the 
magazines are featuring today. 

Mr. Buster went over to Macon and hunted up his friend, the 
editor. Colonel Green extended the glad hand, and then gently chided 
Mr. Buster for sending in such tommy-rot. He really couldn't think 
of printing it, you know ; his subscribers wouldn 't stand for it. 

"How many subscribers have you got over in Morrow township, 
Colonel?" asked the author of the Kaseyville news letter. 

Colonel Green went over his list and replied that he had some 
ten or twelve very nice subscribers. Mr. Buster smiled. 

"Colonel," he said, "if you will print my Kaseyville news letter 
• — that tommy-rot as you call it — I'll wager a new hat that I can put 
half the people in my township on your subscription list." 

Colonel Green lifted his eyebrows and looked hard at his visitor 
to see whether he was joking or not. Finally he said: 

"I'll tell you what I'll do, Buster. I'll print that stuff this week 
if you will let me run it over your name. What do you say!" 

That was entirely satisfactory to Mr. Buster and the news from 
Kaseyville got in. It is said to be an historical fact that that was the 
first real county news letter printed in the state. At least Mr. Buster 
says it was the first one he had ever seen. 

Colonel Green sent Mr. Buster a stack of papers, and the man from 
Kaseyville set out to make his wager good. When he showed the people 
that the news letter was in the paper, that was all he had to do. Nine 
out of every ten men put down their names. 

The result established the news letter. It has been found to be an 
absolute asset of every up-to-date country paper, and this is what some 
of the great metropolitan editors seem not to know, that people are more 
interested in reading about what is going on in the home locality than 
things that are happening across the high seas. 

It became Mr. Buster's interesting duty while engaged as neigh- 
borhood correspondent for the Times to report an unusually sensational 
killing in his neighborhood. 

He was on the spot with several other men near a bridge. It seems 
that one of the worlonen — they were all farmers — had offended a man 
of the vicinity who had started out with a double-barreled shotgun and 
a six-chambered Colts revolver to seek a bloody vengeance. The armed 
man rode into the crowd and began blazing away at his victim, who ran 
some distance, though badly wounded. The merciless assailant got off 
his horse and completed his deadly work with the revolver. Then he 
turned to the horrified spectators and remarked: 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 163 

''Gentlemen, I just had to do it. There is no need for any of you 
folks to follow me." 

The man rode away unmolested and has never been heard of from 
that day until this. 

Mr. Buster took that story up with the instincts of a trained jour- 
nalist. He wrote a graphic introductory, which was followed by the 
report of the coroner's inquest. The Macon Times printed it, but not 
on the first page, as it should have done or would do now. One head 
was deemed sufficient to identify the story. Curiously enough, no St. 
Louis paper seemed to be interested in the matter, and as far as known 
not a line was printed about it outside of Mr. Buster's contribution to 
the Times. Today such story would have occupied first page position 
in every city newspaper in Missouri, and every picture that could be 
obtained of the parties and of the scene would be printed. 

Some twenty or twenty-five years ago Mr. Buster removed from 
Macon to Linn county and located at Marceline. There be acted as 
correspondent for the Linneus Bulletin for nearly twenty years. It 
might be said that his experience as a newspaper correspondent covers 
some forty years altogether. But he is not an old man by any means. 
Mr. Buster is just as young as he ever was and if he cared to could 
take hold of any end of a country newspaper and run it successfully. 
Newspaper readers were familiar with his signature, which was always 
"L Jeff." 

The Brookfield Gazette was the first newspaper established in the 
city which forms a part of its name. In the year 1867 B. Channing 
Moore, a young physician, and A. C. Buffington, a practical printer, 
decided that the time was ripe for the publication of a newspaper in the 
young railroad town. Besides being a very good printer, Mr. Buffing- 
ton had had some experience as a country newspaper publisher. Dr. 
Moore assumed charge of the editorial and business departments, while 
Mr. Buffington was the mechanical superintendent. The first issue was 
dated April 23. 

After conducting the paper a short while Moore and Buffington 
disposed of it to AV. D. Crandall and Henry Ward, two young lawyers. 
Later on Mr. Ward retired and went to Denver. Mr. Crandall, a schol- 
arly and interesting writer, and a man of broad information, success- 
fully operated the paper alone after the retirement of his partner. 
He gave to the Gazette a reputation for enterprise, fairness and reli- 
ability, a reputation that has abided with it through all the years. 

The Brookfield Gazette has at all times advocated the principles of 
the Republican party, and has always given its support to the candidates 



164 HISTOEY OF LIXX COUXTY 

of that organization, except in one instance. Then it declared for what 
was termed the liberal Eepublican ticket, headed by B. Gratz Brown, 
instead of the one headed by Joseph "W. McClurg for governor. 

In 1891 George W. Martin purchased a half interest in the Brook- 
field Gazette, and the paper was published under the firm name of 
Martin & Jones until 1905, when Mr. Jones retired. His interest was 
purchased by J. V. Martin. Since that time the paper has been success- 
fully operated by George W. and J. V. Martin and has steadily main- 
tained its prestige as a thoroughly conservative, courageous and efficient 
journal. Editorially the Brookfield Gazette has always led. It clings 
to the old-time idea — one founded on excellent judgment — that editorials 
are yet considered by a paper's constituents and that they wield an 
influence. The greatest care is taken in the preparation of the matter 
for the editorial page of the Gazette and its typographical arrangement 
is always attractive. The Gazette's paragraphs have become a feature 
of the paper, and are oftentimes reproduced by the metropolitan papers. 
The "Missouri News Department" presents a good natured, though 
sometimes satirical resume of happenings all over the state, and have 
made that department of the Gazette what "Starbeams" are to the 
Kansas City Star. 

Printers all over the state commend the handsome typographical 
appearance of the Gazette. This is mainly due to the skill of Mr. Fred 
E. Culler, who for many years has occupied the position of mechanical 
superintendent, and who has not only made the Gazette one of the most 
beautiful papers in the state from a typographical standpoint, but 
has turned out some printers who have made splendid reputations for 
ability in the printing offices of Missouri, where skill is appreciated. 
The Missouri Press Association in May, 1880, declared the Brookfield 
Gazette, the best printed paper in the state. 

As has been stated, the pioneer newspaper of Linn county was the 
Linneus Bulletin, which was originally started by Thomas E. Brawner 
in 1859. When the Civil War came on Mr. Brawner went into the 
service on the Union side, and shortly after the close of the struggle 
resumed the publication of the paper. The history of the Bulletin 
from that time is thus given in an issue of May, 1912 : 

''Volume Forty-Two. It was in May, 1871, that Capt. Thomas E. 
Brawner, after a brief rest from his arduous struggle in behalf of the 
Union, witnessed the triumph of his idea to found a Linn county Demo- 
cratic newspaper at Linneus. Prior to the appearing of the first number 
of the Bulletin numerous citizens of the county, in order to warrant 



HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 165 

the establisliment of the enterprise, subscribed for the paper, many of 
them paying as much as five years in advance for it. The new paper 
came out with flying colors and for nearly twenty years was success- 
fully conducted by Captain Brawner — Col. George W. Tyler being- 
associated with him in the business a portion of the time. 

*'In February, 1888, Captain Brawner 's health having failed, he 
sold the Bulletin to Messrs. Wigginton & Conger. At that time, 
while the paper ranked high as a county newspaper, the office equip- 
ment was somewhat crude compared with what it is today. The office 
was located in the rear end of a rented upstairs room. The paper was 
printed upon an antiquated Washington hand press. The type was 
old and rather scarce. The force of printers was small but efficient. 
The new management, thanks to an increasing patronage, soon put in 
a new power press, better job presses, new type — much larger in assort- 
ment — and, later, purchased a home for the plant — a brick building 
40x60 feet in dimensions — the building in which the plant is now 
housed. In the summer of 1909, the present publisher, H. J. Wiggin- 
ton, became sole proprietor of the Bulletin plant. By means of a 
vigorous campaign for more business and a cordial response from 
the good people of Linn county, the Bulletin's subscription list has 
been almost doubled during the past three years, and its advertising 
and job printing business has been substantially increased. But with 
this increase of business the expense of conducting the plant has also 
increased. Our office foreman, for instance, who ranks with the most 
proficient in the state, commands a salary double that we paid a foreman 
some years ago. Our pay roll is larger than it has ever been before 
and printing materials of all kinds have soared higher in prices. But 
we are not complaining. We could expect nothing else in this era of 
progress. We like to pay good prices for labor when we have sufficient 
increase of patronage to justify it. We believe in progress all along the 
line. And while it has ever been our purpose to promote the best 
interests of the community in which we live we doubtless have, like 
other members of the human family, made many mistakes of judgment 
which we hope may be converted into stepping-stones to higher achieve- 
ment in the future. We have learned to love the people of Linn county, 
and it is our chief ambition to make the Bulletin an effective factor 
in building up the material, intellectual and moral aspects of the com- 
munity. In the future we may make errors ; we do not expect to please 
everybody, but we shall express our honest opinions editorially in a 
straightforward, conservative manner, with no intention of offending 



166 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

those who honestly differ from us. Politically we shall continue to 
advocate Democratic measures and men. As to local progress, aside 
from politics, we shall know no party lines, but shall always be on the 
side of progress, pulling for what we believe to be the best interest 
of our local towns and county. Leaving the past efforts and attainments 
of our paper to be adjudged by its readers and pledging them a renewal 
of effort to be more useful in the future than we have in the past, we 
enter upon Volume Forty-Two, enthused by higher ideals, which cannot 
fail to bear fruit of their own kind. The Bulletin begins the new volume 
with good will to every member of the human family." 

H. J. Wigginton, editor and publisher of the Bulletin, was born 
in Boone county, Missouri, January 17, 1863. His father was the Rev. 
^Y. R. Wigginton, a pioneer Baptist preacher well known throughout 
Missouri. 

Mr. Wigginton acquired his education in the public schools of 
Audrain county, and at his graduation from the Mexico High School 
was awarded the Orator's Medal. He became one of the proprietors 
of the Linneus Bulletin in February, 1888, and became sole owner in 
1909. For several years he served as chairman of the Democratic 
Central Committee of Linn county; also as secretary of the Second 
District Congressional Committee and as a member of the Sixth District 
Senatorial Committee. Mr. Wigginton has frequently been chosen as 
delegate to state and district conventions by his party, but his most last- 
ing reputation has been achieved by his conscientious devotion to high 
journalistic ideals, and his unfaltering ambition to make the Bulletin 
one of the very best country newspapers in the state. He has been a 
member of the Missouri Press Association for twenty years. For a 
long period the Bulletin has been the official paper of Linn county. 

On May 9, 1907, Mr. Wigginton was married to Mrs. Katherine 
Burch Stewart of Chillicothe, Missouri. 

The Linneus Missourian was founded by G. S. Nicholas in 1865. 
The paper run until 1871, when the plant was destroyed by fire. 

Politically, the Missourian was stalwart Republican, and during 
its short life it was a power in the councils of that party, which at that 
time was in entire control of the county's administration. 

Mr. Nicholas — ''Nick" — they mostly called him — had been a 
preacher previous to his adoption of the newspaper profession. Out in 
West Virginia, from whence he came, he became noted for his earnest 
championship of the national cause and its flag, and when he came to 
Linn county and founded the Missourian he continued preaching the 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 167. 

same doctrine he had so earnestly advocated in the east — the only 
difference being he now had a newspaper to present his views, where 
formerly he gave them from the pulpit or platform. 

At times the Missourian seemed a shade too severe in dealing with 
men who could not see things from the same point of view that its 
editor did. 

Mr. Nicholas was a forcible writer, you might say a strenuous one, 
in coming back at a contemporary who was incautious enough to hazard 
a criticism of the Missourian or its energetic editor, or who dared assail 
the good old Eepublican party. 

The editor of the Missourian did not seek newspaper controversies, 
but when somebody had developed a causus belli he seemed to enjoy 
the resultant tight. His literary ammunition box was always well 
stocked up with burning English, which he applied liberally to his 
adversary's cuticle in the laudable endeavor to bring him around to see 
the error of his ways, the editor said. 

The Missourian is now but a memory, and its vigorous editor has 
gone from among us. He sleeps in the silent city of the dead at Linneus. 

Notwithstanding his frequent acrimonious political combats, Mr. 
Nicholas was a most agreeable gentleman personally, and was generally 
liked and respected. 

The Linn County Netvs was founded by J. H. Brunnermer, and the 
first number was published at Laclede in June, 1881, where the office 
of publication was maintained until the 14th day of September, 1882, 
when the plant was purchased by C. W. and B. F. Northcott and moved 
to Linneus. For a time it had quarters in the old court house building 
and later was moved to the upper rooms in the Perkins building, now 
occupied by the F. D. Bates Drug Co. Having secured an appointment 
in the railway mail service, C. W. Northcott sought a purchaser for his 
part of the plant and D. B. Ormiston entered the firm on the 18th day 
of September, 1884, and the firm became Northcott & Ormiston, the 
senior member being Col. B. F. Northcott. 

Time rolled on and on the 25th day of December, 1884, Mr. Ormiston 
married the youngest daughter. Miss Nellie, of Col. and Mrs. B. F. 
Northcott, the marriage ceremony being performed by Rev. J. 0. 
Taylor, the young pastor of the Linneus Methodist Episcopal church, 
now superintendent of the Brookfield district. About a year later 
the senior member of the firm sold his interest in the paper to N. 
Fenstemaker and the firm name was changed to Ormiston & Fenste- 
maker. This partnership lasted not quite two years, when Mr. Ormiston 



168 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

purchased his partner's interest, since which time until the present 
Mr, Ormiston has been alone in the publication of the paper. 

In 1889 the plant was moved to the Greer building, where now 
stands the opera house block and there it remained until the fall of 
1893, when it was moved into the new building on the south side of the 
square, where it has enjoyed the delights of being at home. The build- 
ing was originally a one-story brick, 21x60 feet. A few years thereafter 
twenty-one feet were added to the length of the building. The building 
was planned and erected specially for the Neivs and it is now one of 
the best country newspaper offices in the state. 

The policy of the Netvs has always been to advocate every move- 
ment calculated to improve the condition of the people socially, morally, 
intellectually and commercially. In politics the News has been con- 
sistently Republican at all times, but never bitterly partisan. It 
<?oncedes the right to every man to believe whatever he pleases ; hence 
its advocacy of Republican policies has never led it to attack the 
individual who sees things differently. The News stands for education 
and sobriety and therefore has always advocated temperance. The 
Neivs stands for Linneus first, because this is its home, and for Linn 
county and the state of Missouri because Linneus is a part of both. 

In October, 1909, the News issued a Twenty-Fifth Anniversary 
Edition under the management of Mr. Ormiston. This splendid 
example of newspaper enterprise comprised thirty-two pages, in which 
there were over 100 columns of handsomely displayed advertisements 
illustrating the progress of Linn county's merchants and industries 
of all kinds. There were a great number of engravings and some able 
articles contributed by special writers. 

The Linn County Budget appeared in the local field of journalism 
in 1895, with A. L. Crosby as editor and proprietor. From an humble 
beginning, and in spite of well-established competition, it grew steadily 
and rapidly. Its policy was and has ever been to champion the cause 
of the people rather than to be the organ of any clique or party. This 
characteristic won for it such a wide popularity that at the end of ten 
years its name was changed from the Brookfield Budget to The Linn 
County Budget, expressing more correctly its relation to the large 
community. 

Within this scope it aims to give the local news and to discuss both 
local and national matters that affect the interests of its readers. 
Republican in politics, still it refuses to blindly subscribe to the 
dictates of party leadership when they are inconsistent with the editor's 



HISTORY OF LINX COUNTY 169 

iinderstaiiding of those principles as applied to the people, for and 
whom they were formulated. On the other hand it is broad enough 
to acknowledge that there is often much good in the contentions of 
others who may in general think differently in matters political or 
religious, or concerning the various minor questions that are constantly 
coming up in the life of any people. 

Prominent among those who have served in an editorial capacity 
on this publication are W. M. Malone, whose business ability pushed 
it to the front rank among the country weeklies of this state; Judge 
A. L. Pratt, who left journalism to devote himself to politics, and 
who is now serving his second term as probate judge of Linn county ; 
and A. C. Pettijohn, whose appointment as superintendent of State 
Hospital for the insane No. 2 at St. Joseph, Missouri, made it necessary 
for him to sever his relations with the newspaper. 

The present editor, H. C. Myers, has been connected with the 
paper for the past five years. He succeeded Dr. Pettijohn in the 
editorial chair, April 1, 1910; at which time, also, he acquired a two- 
thirds interest in the paper, while his present partner. Miss Nellie 
E. Hannan, purchased the other third. Under this management the 
paper became a semi-weekly publication, the only paper in its territory 
issued oftener than once a week. 

Mr. Myers is a native of Brookfield, having been born in the house 
at the northeast corner of North Livingston and West Woods streets 
July 3, 1867. His father. Col. A. W. Myers, was one of the pioneer 
residents of that city, a prominent member of the Linn county bar 
and representative in the state legislature from 1870-72. H. C. Myers 
received his preliminary education in Brookfield academy, and after- 
wards graduated from the academic department of the University 
of Wooster at Wooster, Ohio. As athletic director and assistant 
teacher of Latin and mathematics in the preparatory department, he 
was employed in that institution for five years. In 1896 he was 
elected president of Brookfield college, which position he held until 
that school was purchased to become the local high school. Afterwards 
he taught for several years in the public schools of Brookfield as 
principal of the Hickman school. Mr. Myers was united in marriage 
with Miss Clara B. Bradshaw, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Edmund 
Bradshaw, of Linn county, in August, 1891. Mr. and- Mrs. Myers 
have four children, Finley B., Harriet L., Helen E. and Katherine B. 

Miss Hannan is a native of Linn county. She graduated from the 
Brookfield high school, and afterwards took up work in a local news- 



170 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

paper office, where she became an expert compositor, and rose from 
an apprentice in the business to be part owner of this publication. 

The Brookfield Argus was founded by Charles W. Green in 1882, 
and the paper has been under Mr. Green's control ever since. From 
the day he began the publication of the Argus it has been Mr. Green's 
ambition to issue a model newspaper. During the long period the 
Argus has been, going to the people of Linn county, it has each week 
reflected the tireless ambition of its editor. So well has the paper 
championed the cause of Brooldield and Linn county that it has a 
fixed place as one of the institutions of city and county, and is 
recognized as a real and growing asset. 

When it comes to exploiting any enterprise that promises well 
for the people's good, not only has the Argus been found most generous 
in the space placed at the disposal of the movement, but its editor 
gets out and works for it. It is in recognition of the valuable service 
so long given the interests of Brookfield that Mr. Green was honored 
with the presidency of the Commercial Club, a position which adds 
considerably to the effectiveness of his labor for the town. 

The Argus has long been recognized by the printing fraternity 
as a model newspaper. It is made up on a perfect typographical 
system, which is apparent at once to the artistic eye, and is pleasing 
to the general reader. No advertisements are run on the first page, 
which is reserved exclusively for the more important news and articles 
of interest. 

Each class of matter, news, editorial, society, literary and local, 
has its own particular place in the paper, and the subscriber always 
knows which page to look into to find what he wants. The paper is 
eight pages, seven columns to the page, and every one of the fifty-six 
columns contains something of interest. 

The tone of the Argus reveals the greatest editorial care over 
every department. It is the family's newspaper, and there is never 
an issue that cannot be safely placed in the hands of any boy or girl. 
By this policy of pure reading, the elimination of offensive details 
in news-stories, and unceasing labor for the uplift of the people the 
Argus has acquired an immense circulation throughout Linn county, 
and has held to it. The editor believes in the plan of extending a 
newspaper strictly on its merits, knowing that is the only true way of 
making a permanent subscriber. 

The Argus was moved into the handsome new Frances building 
on Main street, September 1, 1910. The rooms occupied were specially 



HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 171 

fitted up for the accommodation of the paper, being well-lighted, with 
substantial floors and ceiling, tile lobby, furnished with sofas, writing 
tables and every convenience for patrons as well as the people who 
get out the paper. 

In its handsome new home the Argus has a broader opportunity 
of serving the people than ever, and as it is dedicated to that mission 
there is every reason to believe that all the hopes of its enterprising 
editor for the good of his constituency will be fully realized. 



CHAPTER XIV 

Human Interest Chapter — A Red-Hot "Hoss" Race — Mr. Alexander's 
Game Ride — A "Hair Finish" — Famous Statesman — Benton and 
Linn — BIrs. Linn's Presentiment Saves Husband's Life — Sketch 
of Benton — His Visit to Linneus — He Answers a Question — "Give 
the Boys a Chance!" — The Duel With Lucas — Thirty Years in Con- 
gress — Humor of the Court — A Wise Janitor — Argued With a 
Juryman — First Execution in Linn County — End of "Tennessee 
Tom"— A Haunted Locality— The Hoivell Case— "The Taylor 
Boys" — (See History of Browning). 

The people of the pioneer days were great lovers of sport. They 
didn't have football and baseball and theaters and things of that 
character, but they had other features that sent the red blood surging 
through their veins, and were fully as satisfactory to them as some of 
the latter day diversions are to the people now on earth. There was 
cock fighting, archery tournaments, foot races and occasionally a good 
old-fashioned fist fight. These events would be announced beforehand 
and they would serve to bring the farmers in for many miles around. 
But the kingly amusement of the day was a horse race. Some man 
would get hold of a runner that could beat everything in his neighbor- 
hood. If a horse were developed that could beat any animal in the 
county that meant a great deal of fame for its owner. But as certain 
as night followed day the next county would bring out a good horse, 
and then there would be fun for the pioneers. In those days, while 
money was not very plentiful, it was the habit of the people, young and 
old, to wager all they could afford on the result of the race. As a 
rule some straight stretch of ground, a quarter or a half mile long, was 
selected as the course. This would be carefully rolled and sometimes 
ropes would be put up along the course to keep the crowd from surging 
out in front of the horses. There would be two judges at each end of 
the course. If the jockies or riders signalled "go" the judges at the 
starting point figured on what the distance might be between the horses 
there and what it was at the end of the course, and this discrepancy at 
the start was deducted at the end. 



HISTORY OF LIXN COUNTY 173 

A noted race was pulled off at Linneus in the summer of 1852. 
Quite a lot of people had settled about Linneus then and the race 
brought visitors from far and near. One of the horses was a black mare 
owned by Willis Park. The animal was ridden by Bill Alexander, the 
famous horseman, who is now about eighty-four years old and is living 
in Oregon. 

The horse matched against the black was a fine sorrel owned and 
ridden by a Mr. Weldon of Gallatin, Daviess county. 

"Weldon was a small man, with sharp, earnest features, pretty 
close to seventy years of age, but full of vitality and as enthusiastic 
over a horse race as a youngster. Weldon was confident that Ms horse 
would win with a fair deal, but was afraid if he trusted it to a jocky that 
the rider might "throw off" on the race. 

Weldon 's horse was heavily backed by the men who came from 
Livingston and Daviess counties. The black horse was the favorite 
of the people from Linn, Chariton and Macon counties. Well-to-do 
people bet thousands of dollars on the result, and boys bet half dollars, 
quarters, horse whips, spurs or anything they had. The course was 
about 600 yards, laid off and managed in the method described. It 
happened that the two eager horses and riders secured a "nose to 
nose ' ' start. Great cheers ascended from the throats of the big crowd. 
Everybody at the starting end rushed pell-mell along withthe horses, 
who kept almost squarely abreast until nearly under the wire, 
when Alexander dropped his reins, leaned forward and gave the black 
mare the spurs as far as they would go in. The frightened animal made 
a mighty leap forward, which caused it to beat the sorrel horse by just 
a half a head as it passed the judges. 

A terrific roar went up from the crowd. Hats were thrown in the 
air and the winners danced for joy. The crowd swarmed around 
Alexander and his black racer. Many men threw their arms around 
the horse's neck, and were extravagant in their expressions of delight. 

Although it was the greatest race ever run in north Missouri there 
was no contest over the result. It was admitted that both riders had 
ridden fairly and showed themselves to be expert managers of race 
horses. Alexander, by a little strategy, had succeeded in coming in 
just ahead and the way he did it was regarded as entirely fair. Wel- 
don also received enthusiastic congratulations because of his plucky 
ride and was almost as much of a hero that day as Alexander. 

Barton, Benton, Linn and Vest were among the United States 
senators from Missouri about whom the old-timers never tire of telling 
stories. The campaigns and speeches are the subjects of frequent dis- 



174 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

cussion among the older politicians of the state. Here is a story that 
came down from the early days to Walter Williams, dean of the Mis- 
souri School of Journalism, and as its subject was Senator Lewis F. 
Linn, for whom Linn county was named, it will be pertinent to this 
history. As will be noticed in the biographical sketch of Senator Linn 
in this volume, he began his career by practicing medicine and was 
called Dr. Linn. Mr. William's story of Dr. Linn is as follows: 

"It may not have been fifty years ago," said a gentleman whose 
years did not seem to warrant the belief that he was in active life much 
longer than fifty years ago, "and it may have been longer when Dr. 
Linn was the colleague of Colonel Benton in the United States Senate. 
I was reminded by a chance circumstance in which he and Mrs. Lynn 
played a part. She, like her husband, was a great favorite for many 
years in Washington society and deservedly so — not more on account 
of her personal attractions than her intellectual qualities. On the 
occasion when the incident to which I have referred occurred Senator 
and Mrs. Linn were to be guests at a formal dinner by the president 
at the White House. Early in the evening Dr. Linn, feeling somewhat 
ill, concluded to remain in his lodgings. Mr. Webster called at the 
moment. "He was requested to escort Mrs. Linn and convey to the 
president his regrets as not being able to be one of his guests. At 
the proper hour Mrs. Linn, escorted by Mr. Webster, was conveyed in 
her carriage to the White House. The company had not long been 
seated at the table when Mrs. Linn remarked to Mr. Webster, by whose 
side she was seated, that she feared she had not done right in leaving 
the doctor, and that she felt an inclination, if she could do so without 
marring the occasion, to return to her hotel. Mr. Webster made some 
observation designed to dissuade her from departing then, saying that 
if she felt so disposed she could leave at an earlier hour than the rest 
of the company. 

"So strongly did the impulse grow^ on her that soon after she 
made it known to Mr. Webster and so urgent was she that he did as 
she requested and quietly made known to the president her wishes. 
Mr. Webster accompanied her to the carriage, and at her request, 
returned to the table. Her instruction to the driver was to proceed 
rapidly to her home, and twice on her way she enjoined him to drive 
faster. Arriving at the spot, without waiting for the groom to open 
the carriage door, she in the quickest manner opened it herself and 
sprang to the room where she had left her husband. As she entered 
she beheld her husband on the bed and the clothing in flames. A mo- 
ment more would have been too late. Dr. Linn was in a stupor and in 



HISTORY OF LIN^T COUNTY 175 

some manner, which was never perfectly explained, the bedclothes had 
taken fire. He was ill for a number of days. His life was saved, 
apparently, through his wife's presentiment, which I think was as 
remarkable as any on record. Mrs. Linn related the facts to Mr. Web- 
ster in my presence on his calling the next morning. His observations 
after Mrs. Linn had finished the narration of her first impulse to leave 
the president's table, her struggle to repress it, the growth of the pre- 
sentiment till it oveimastered her, the ride homeward, her anxiety 
for greater haste, her bursting into the room, her husband's danger 
and rescue — to which Mr. Webster listened with absorbing attention 
— were characteristics of the man — solemn and impressive beyond my 
ability to repeat." 

In the summer of 1856 Hon. Thomas H. Benton made a campaign 
tour in northern Missouri, speaking at Bloomington, Macon county, 
Linneus, in Linn county, and other places. It was the last political 
campaign of the famous statesman. He was running for governor. 
Benton's opponents were Trusten Polk, the Democratic candidate, and 
Eobert C. Ewing, the Whig candidate. While Benton found many 
friends in Linn county, he also run across many who were opposed to 
him. Polk was elected. Edward Hoyle was the host of Benton during 
his visit to Linn county. 

Walter Williams, dean of the Missouri School of Journalism, says 
of Benton: "All in all, Benton was the greatest man Missouri has 
produced." 

The following sketch, compiled from interviews with men who 
have met Benton, and from other sources, will give the generation of 
today some idea of the man who did so much for the history of Mis- 
souri : 

Thomas Hart Benton died April 10, 1858, at the age of seventy- 
six. His remains lie in one of the large cemeteries at St. Louis. No 
Missouri statesman since Benton's time has exerted as great an 
influence upon the nation. He stood in a class by himself. It was his 
boast that he was not like other men. Had he lived in Cromwell's 
time and in his country there would have been a titanic struggle be- 
tween Benton and the great Puritan for leadership. They were alike 
in some respects. Each thought himself called by a high destiny to 
do a great work that no other hand could do. Each was imperious, 
dominating, irascible when contradicted or opposed. Each thought 
his personal enemies men who were actuated by evil spirits, opposers 
of the Lord. 

On the occasion when Benton spoke at Linneus there was in some 



176 HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 

parts of Missouri, as liave been suggested, bitter antagonism towards 
him. Everybody liked to hear Benton, but he had arrived at that stage 
of his career when everybody did not agree with him. There was a 
marked feeling of hostility against him at Bloomington, the adjoining 
county seat in Macon county. It is possible the great statesman felt 
it. But he never feared a hostile crowd. Benton was a fighter in every 
sense of the word. He was in a rough-and-tumble melee on the streets 
of Nashville, where knives and pistols were used. When the smoke of 
combat cleared away it was found that General Jackson had been shot 
in the shoulder, Jesse Benton had been severely stabbed. Thomas 
Benton had been stabbed and thrown down a stairway and others, in- 
cluding the "innocent bystander," carried marks of the deadly en- 
counter. 

Hurt his reputation? Not a bit of it. His successful political 
career came after that brawl. 

"Citizens!" cried Benton to his Bloomington hearers, "you have 
heard in these latter days some talk about ' anti-Benton ! ' Well, I have 
read somewhere of * anti-Christ ! ' And Benton is here to tell you that 
he never entertained a high opinion of the antis ! ' ' 

At that time some merchant of Bloomington had placed a sign 
over his place of business, designating it as the "Anti-Benton Store." 

There was a pugnacious woodsman in the audience and he wasn't 
afraid to ask the lion-like statesman a question. He had journeyed a 
long ways for the purpose. Pushing through the big crowd he made 
his way right up to the stand where Benton was spouting fire and 
ashes like a volcano, and pointing a long, skinny forefinger fiercely, 
cried : 

"Colonel Benton!" 

The speaker stopped and glared at the interrupter. Before Ben- 
ton had time to eat him up alive the man went on : 

"I understand, sir, that you voted for the Wilmot proviso. Now, 
my people sent me fifty miles today to ask you if that was so. I want 
to carry back home with me a straight-out answer, yes or no!" 

The crowd became silent. There were others who wanted to hear 
the answer to that significant question. Benton drew a long breath 
and roared back: 

"You want a straight-out answer, sir, and you shall have it! 
Benton is not ashamed of anything he ever did in the halls of legisla- 
tion. Go home, sir, and tell your people that Benton was not in the 
house the day the vote was taken, but he left a speech to be read before 
the body, and that speech of Benton's killed it, sir — ^killed it dead! 



HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 177 

Search the record. Is there anything else you want to know from 

Benton?" 

Immense cheering greeted this dramatic utterance, and many who 
had been strongly against the old gladiator came around to his side. 

The crowd about the stand was so dense that some boys were 
unable to get close enough to see. Benton, always alert, noticed this 
and exclaimed: 

"Stand back, you old men, and give the boys a chance! It will 
be something for them to tell their posterity that they have seen and 
shaken hands with Benton!" 

It was one of those boys in whctse interest Benton spoke that day 
to whom the writer is indebted for the above incidents. 

Senator Benton survived his defeat for governor two years. He 
devoted that time to literary work relating to his experience in the 
senate and his observations of governmental affairs. North Carolina 
was his native state. There he was born March 14, 1782. When he 
was a boy of eight Benton's father died, and a few years later the 
family removed to Tennessee, near Franklin. In later years a great 
battle was fought there between the national forces and the Confed- 
erates, and many Missouri soldiers were in the fray. 

It was while living at Franklin that young Benton rebelled against 
farm life, and began the study of law. While absorbing Blackstone, 
Benton established himself in a cave on his mother's farm and applied 
himself so assiduously to his book that he often failed to appear at 
meal time. 

The affair at Nashville, referred to above, ruined Benton's 
prospects in Tennessee. A few months after it occurred he was 
appointed a lieutenant colonel in the United States army, and left for 
service in Canada. The early declaration of peace led to his resignation 
and return. Two years later he arrived in St. Louis, and ever after 
called that city his home. 

Benton immediately became active in public affairs, and to further 
his ambitions he founded a newspaper known as The Missouri Inquirer. 
In this he persistently demanded statehood for Missouri, and, inci- 
dentally, flayed persons who had won his antagonism, a characteristic 
that followed him all through life. One particular enemy he stirred 
up was Charles Lucas, and eventually there were two duels fought 
by Benton and Lucas on "Bloody Island," a place of many duels. 
The second encounter resulted in Lucas' death in 1817. 

In spite of this tragic affair, Benton's power grew and in 1820 
he was elected to the United States senate. Though for nearly a 



178 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

year longer he was, as he called it "a soldier without arms," as Missouri 
was not formally admitted to the Union until August 10, 1821. 

With Senator Benton's arrival at the national capital his real 
career began. He was in an atmosphere that accorded with his 
ambitions. He began to do things, and was immediately recognized 
as one of the really great men of the time. For five full terms, or 
thirty years, he represented Missouri uninterruptedly in the National 
congress in a way that permitted neither his constituents at home nor 
the country at large to forget him for one single moment. Young, 
strong and courageous, and from a new, far Western state, Benton 
brought to the staid, bewigged old senators of the East the vitalizing 
atmosphere of a region destined to become the greatest in the nation. 

Maj. A. W. MuUins furnished the compiler of this history with 
this curious incident which occurred in a court of the old Eleventh 
Judicial Circuit: 

''Tom C was the janitor at the court house in a certain 

county seat. He was intensely interested in all manner of court 
proceedings, and never hesitated to ask questions when he wanted to 
know anything. The expressions of a jury were a favorite study to 
Tom, and he could tell almost to a certainty by them how a case would 
go. Tom seemed to feel it as a part of his official duties to keep tab 
on matters, and the lawyers would ask him all sorts of questions about 
trials in which they were engaged, and Tom would answer them with 
the gravity of a United States senator. He was never slack in his 
real duties of keeping the fire going, the windows washed and the 
floor swept up, but he seemed to find plenty of time to learn all there 
was to know about the case. 

"It was at a time when Judge Burgess was on the bench. I was 
defending a man for murder. The circumstances were such as to 
elicit the greatest interest throughout the county. It seems the 
defendant had caught a man visiting his wife and had immediately 
armed himself with the old-fashioned rectifier of domestic troubles, 
a double-barrelled shotgun, and with it had blown a hole through the 
head of the Lothario. 

"The unwritten law wasn't quite as famous in Missouri at that 
time as it became later on, and some features of this case made it a 
rather serious one for my client. Of course, we hoped for an acquittal, 
but there was a very grave doubt. I went to Tom after the evidence 
was all in and asked him what he thought about the case. 

" 'It's a pretty tough proposition. Major,' he said, scratching 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 179 

his head ; ' a mighty tough proposition, but I think your man will pull 
through all right.' 

''The jury was out three days. I had several talks with my friend 
Tom, and while he always frankly admitted that it was a very grave 
situation, yet he insisted that in the end the defendant would be 
acquitted. I wondered from whence came his confidence, but did not 
ask. Towards the close of the third day Tom came to me in high spirits. 

" 'It's all right. Major, — entirely all right!' he exclaimed. 

" 'What do you mean, Torn?' I asked. 

" 'Why, they are going to turn your man loose.' 

" 'You're joking, Tom; they are hung up beyond all hope.' 

" 'You just wait!' 

"Inside of five minutes there was a knock on the jury room door 
and that sinister signal that means so much for weal or woe. Tom 
was way up at the front grinning with confidence. I took hope from 
the expression of his face. Sure enough the jury reported in our 
favor. Our man was acquitted, just as Janitor Tom had confidently 
announced he would be. I confess that my curiosity was keenly aroused. 
I hunted up Tom to learn how it all happened. 

" 'Ah '11 tell you how it was, Major,' a proud light shining out of his 

good-natured eyes. 'I knew S , who was on the jury, 

and waited until I got a chance to talk to him. l^ou see, he was the 
fellow who was hanging 'em up. I got him out to one side this noon 
and told him what an awful shame it would be to have to try this case 
again. That me and the judge and the other tax-payers would have 
to put up the money and that we couldn't stand the expense. I told 
him that the fellow what was killed got about what was coming to him 
anyhow; that I had known him a long time and that he was a worth- 
less cuss and a good deal better off where he was than if he had been 
upon earth among decent people. He saw that I was talking sense, 
and as he is a pretty level headed fellow he told me he guessed he'd 
give in. I didn't promise him anything, but if you would like to give 
him a few cigars sometime I am certain that he would appreciate it. ' " 

The first execution in Linn county occurred in July, 1866. Judge 
Lynch presided. The culprit was a young negro who had recently 
come from Saline county. His name in Linneus was "Tennessee Tom," 
Tennessee being his native state. The victim was a little school girl, 
who told what had happened, and in a short time afterwards indignant 
men left their work and searched the country for the black man. "Ten- 
nessee Tom" was apprehended in a few hours, taken to the court room, 
along with a number of other negroes, and identified by his victim. 



180 HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 

He had also been seen by others. The general sentiment was in favor 
of immediate punishment. Some citizens, however, advised that the 
negro be turned over to the authorities and dealt with through the 
channels of the law. The feeling was too bitter to follow this course 
and '* Tennessee Tom" was marched over to a grove in the eastern 
part of town, one end of a rope tied about his neck and the other thrown 
over the limb of a tree. There was a short shift and the black man's 
body was soon quivering in death. The body hung until nightfall, when 
some negroes took it down and buried it. ''Tennessee Tom" pro- 
tested his innocence to the last and yet he seemed rather indifferent 
to his fate. 

The tree on which the negro was hung died soon after the execu- 
tion, and many superstitious ones regarded it with awe. For a long 
time afterwards the negroes avoided the place after dark. Each ghost 
that appeared to a negro was said to emanate from the sinister spot 
where "Tennessee Tom" met his dramatic end. 



I 

Next to the Taylor case the killing of Mrsy Minnie Hall and her 
four children the night of January 19, 1'099/ was the most sensa- 
tional. Mrs. Hall lived with her children in a cottage about five miles 
southwest of Brookfield. On the night mentioned her house was dis- 
covered to be on fire. Neighbors rushed to the rescue and found Mrs. 
Hall and her children in the mass of flames d^ad. Nettie, the oldest 
girl, had marks indicating she had been struck by a blunt instrument. 
Some one noticed there were tracks in the snow. These tracks were 
followed. They lead direct to Brookfield and around the railroad yards, 
and from there to the Babb Hotel. The party following the tracks 
entered the hotel and found Joseph A. Howell, a cousin of Mrs. Hall, 
just ready to retire. He was arrested and taken to the Linneus jail. 
Evidence began to shape up against him, and he was charged with 
the murder of little Nettie. Howell had taught school at Prairie 
Mound, and was regarded as a man of good education and integrity. 
He had well-to-do folks near Ironton, Ohio. Maj. A. W. Mullins, of 
Linneus; 0. F. Libby, of Laclede, and T. M. Brinkley, of Brookfield, 
were employed to defend the accused. C. C. Bigger, prosecuting attor- 
ney of Linn county, was assisted by A. W. Myers, an experienced 
lawT^er of Brookfield. The trial was at Linneus. It attracted great 
attention. At every session the hall where court was held was taxed 
to accommodate the crowd. Howell was found guilty and sentenced 



HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 181 

to death. But his attorneys appealed to the supreme court, which 
tribunal reversed the case. (See 100 Mo.) 

Before the next trial there was a change of venue to Trenton. 
T. M. Bresnehen had succeeded Mr. Bigger as prosecuting attorney 
and had charge of the case for the state. Mr. Bigger and Mr. Myers, 
however, were still retained to assist the prosecution, and Judge George 
Hall and 0. G. Bain of Trenton added to the state's force. The de- 
fense was reinforced by the law firm of Harber & Knight, of Trenton. 
At the first trial at Trenton there was a hung jury, but at the next 
trial Howell was convicted and again sentenced to death. The case 
went to the supreme court again, but this time the lower court was 
affirmed and the execution of Howell followed. 



CHAPTER XV 

An Ofjicial Chapter — The County Representatives — Line of Circuit 
Judges — Intrepidity of Judge Smith at a Perilous Time — Sena- 
torial and Congressional — Democratic Congressional Committee — 
Republican Congressional Committee — Democratic County Com- 
mittee — Republican County Committee — Linn County's Popula- 
tion by Toivnships — Vote on State Officers — Incorporated Towns 
and Villages — Postoffices — Linn County Newspapers. 

In this chapter it is the purpose to give some historical data con- 
cerning those who held office in Linn county, and those in whom Linn 
county had an interest because of its place in the political divisions 
of the state. There will also be presented here some tables showing 
the present political organizations in the county, together with the 
biographical sketches of some of the leaders. 

The representatives of Linn county in the state legislature from 
1838 until the present were as follows : 

1838 — James A. Clark, Democrat. 

1840 — Irvin Ogan, Democrat. 

1842 — David Jenkins, Whig. 

1844 — E. C. Morlock, Democrat. 

1846 — Jeremiah Phillips, Democrat. 

1848 — G. W. Guinn, Democrat. 

1850— Jacob Smith, Whig. 

1852 — Wesley Hallburton, Democrat. 

1854 — John Botts, Democrat. 

1856 — Beverly Neece, Democrat. 

1858— John F. Gooch, Whig. 

1860 — E. H. Richardson, Democrat. 

1862— A. W. Mullins, Republican. 

1864 — Dr. John F. Powers, Republican; died in 1865. 

R. W. Holland, unexpired term. Republican. 
1866— T. J. Stauber, Republican. 
1868— A. W. Mullins, Republican. 
1870 — Abram W. Myers, Democrat. 
1872— S. P. Hoston, Republican. 

182 



HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY . 183 

1874 — Abner Moyer, Democrat. 

1876 — George W. Easley, Democrat. 

1878 — W. H. Patterson, Democrat. 

1880 — E. D. Harvey, Democrat. 

1882 — Harry Lander, Democrat, • 

1884 — Hiram Black, Eepubliean. 

1886 — James A. Arbuthnot, Eepubliean. 

1888 — Charles W. Trumbo, Democrat. 

1890 — Thomas D. Evans, Democrat. 

1892 — Abra. C. Pettijohn, Republican. 

1894 — Abra. C. Pettijohn, Republican. 

1896— J. H. Perrin, Populist. 

1898 — Abra. C. Pettijohn, Republican. 

1900 — Clarence M. Kendrick, Democrat. 

1902 — Edward Barton, Democrat. 

1904 — Abra. C. Pettijohn, Republican. 

1906 — George "W. Martin, Republican. 

1908 — Benjamin L. White, Democrat. 

1910 — Walter Brownlee, Democrat. 

The state senators from 1840 to the present were : 

1840 — Thomas C. Burch, Macon county, Democrat. 

1842 — Dr. John Wolfscale, Livingston county. Democrat. 

1846 — Augustus W. Flournoy, Linn county, Democrat. 

1850 — Augustus W. Flournoy, Linn county, Democrat. 

1854 — Frederic Rowland, Macon county. Democrat, 

1854 — Frederic Rowland, Linn county. Democrat. 

1858 — Wesley Haliburton, Sullivan county, Democrat. 

1862 — John McCollough, Sullivan county. Radical ; died in 1863. 

1863 — I. V. Pratt, unexpired term, Linn county. Radical. 

1866 — I, V. Pratt, Linn county. Radical. 

1870 — William A. Shelton, Putnam county. Radical. 

1874 — E. F. Perkins, Linn county. Democrat. 

1878 — Andrew J. Mackey, Chariton county, Democrat. 

1882 — Wesley Halliburton, Democrat. 

1886 — Andrew J. Mackey, Democrat. 

1890 — Edward R. Stephens, Democrat. 

1894 — Alfred N. Seaber, Republican. 

1898— Emmett B. Fields Democrat. 

1902— Emmett B. Fields, Democrat. 

1906— Emmett B. Fields, Democrat. 

1910 — Benjamin L. White, Democrat. 



184 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

Thomas Reynolds was the first judge of the circuit court, his 
service dating from 1837. The Hon. James A. Clark was circuit 
attorney. Up to 1843 the circuit was known as the eleventh judicial 
circuit, and was composed of Grundy, Livingston, Linn, Adair, Macon 
and Chariton counties. By act of the legislature in March 7, 1849, 
the eleventh judicial circuit was composed of these counties : 

Chariton, Linn, Livingston, Grundy, Mercer, Dodge, Putnam and 
Sullivan. The change went into effect July 4th. 

When the general assembly met in 1880-81 the counties composing 
the eleventh judicial circuit were again changed, the circuit being 
formed as follows: Chariton, Linn, Sullivan, Grundy and Mercer. 

Linn county is now in the twelfth judicial circuit, which is formed 
of the following counties : Chariton, Linn and Sullivan. 

As the first judge of the circuit court in Linn county something 
of the career of Judge Thomas Reynolds may be of interest. 

Judge Reynolds was also the first judge of the circuit court in 
Macon county. He was appointed judge of the district by Gov. 
Lilbum W. Boggs, January 27, 1837. Judge Reynolds took the oath 
of office before William Taylor, a notary public of Howard county, 
February 7th, the year he was appointed. 

Judge Reynolds was born in Bracken county, Kentucky, March 
12, 1796. While holding the office of Governor of Missouri he committed 
suicide in the executive mansion at Jefferson City, February 9, 1844. 
But very little is known regarding his early education, but it was no 
doubt as good as could be obtained in the schools where he resided. He 
certainly was not a classical scholar, though he had some knowledge 
of Latin. He was admitted to the bar in Kentucky about the time 
he became of age. In early life he removed to Illinois, where he filled 
the successive offices of clerk of the house of representatives, speaker, 
attorney general, and chief justice of the supreme court. 

In 1829 he came to Missouri and located at Fayette, Howard county. 
His high reputation as a jurist had preceded him and he soon enjoyed 
a good legal practice. He was sent from Howard county to the legis- 
lature, and became speaker of the house. After serving for some time 
in the legislature, he was appointed judge of the circuit, comprising 
the counties of Howard, Boone, Callaway, Randolph and Macon. When 
the circuits were changed and Macon became a part of the Eleventh 
District Judge Reynolds became judge of that circuit. 

In 1840 the Democratic party met in state convention at Jefferson 
City and Judge Reynolds was nominated for governor. Judge Bay, 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 185 

who attended the convention, wrote of Judge Reynolds in the Bench 
and Bar of Missouri : 

''It was at this convention that we made Judge Reynolds's 
acquaintance, and formed a very high estimate of him, as not only a 
man of ability, but of undoubted integrity and honesty of purpose. As 
a delegate in the convention we gave him our support, and had occasion 
frequently afterwards to meet and transact business with him, as we 
were in the legislature and there most of the time he was governor. 
He was elected over J. B. Clark by a handsome majority." 

The following appeared in the Bench and Bar concerning Judge 
Reynolds's death: 

"Shortly after breakfast, on February 9, 1844, a report of a gun 
was heard from the executive mansion in Jefferson City, and some 
persons passing by at the time went into the governor's office to 
ascertain the cause of it, and there found the governor lying in his 
blood, dead. Just previous he had sent out for a rifle. The muzzle of 
the rifle he had placed against his forehead, and by the aid of a strong 
twine he discharged the weapon. On a table near where he fell was a 
letter addressed to Col. William G. Minor, an intimate friend, which 
read as follows: 

" 'In every situation in which I have been placed I have labored 
to discharge my duty faithfully to the public, but this has not protected 
me for the last twelve months from the slander and abuse of my enemies, 
which have rendered life a burden to me. I pray God to forgive them 
and teach them more charity. My will is in the hands of James L. 
Minor, Esq. 

'Farewell. Th. Reynolds." ' 



Hi 



Following is the line of circuit judges succeeding Judge Reynolds : 
Thomas C. Burch served as circuit judge of the district from April, 
1839, until December, when he died. 

Judge James A. Clark was appointed the successor of Judge Birch, 
and held the position until 1861. At that time the Civil War was on 
and he was ousted from office for refusing to take what was called 
"The Gamble Test Oath." Judge Clark was born in Estell county, 
Kentucky, February 22, 1805. He came to Missouri with his father, 
Bennett Clark, in 1817, and settled in Howard county; began to study 
law at the age of twenty, in the office of Peyton R. Hayden, a dis- 
tinguished lawyer of Boonville. Two years later was admitted to the 
Howard county bar. In 1827 went to Galena, Illinois, practiced in the 



186 HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 

courts there until 1833, when he returned to Missouri and located in 
Linn county, then a part of Chariton county. Started to farm a mile 
north of where Linneus is now. When not concerned with his legal 
duties Judge Clark was very much interested in his farm work and he 
was also passionately fond of hunting. He was what might be called 
an all-round man. At times his services were required to draw deeds, 
give legal advice, settle differences among neighbors and to prescribe 
medicine. In all these matters he was looked upon as an authority. 

Judge Clark was Linn county's first representative in the legisla- 
ture. The county was organized in 1837 and he went to Jefferson City 
as its representative in 1838. During that session of the legislature 
the eleventh judicial circuit was formed, and Judge Burch was made 
the first judge of the circuit. As stated, Judge Burch died in Decem- 
ber and Judge Clark was appointed to fill the vacancy. Under the 
law at that time judges were appointed to serve *' during good be- 
havior." Judge Clark enjoyed the benefits of that law as long as it 
lasted, and was afterwards twice elected by the people. His entire 
service extended over twenty years, when the Civil War began, and he 
was removed for the cause noted. Judge Clark recommended that his 
friend, Judge Jacob Smith, be appointed in his place. The recom- 
mendation of Judge Clark was carried out and Judge Smith served 
until he was killed at Linneus by a band of raiders. Judge Clark 
moved from Linn county to Chillicothe, Missouri, in 1843, and then to 
Monticello, Chariton county. In 1878 he returned to Linneus. Judge 
Clark was married twice. His first wife was Martha A. Lewis, of 
Howard county, to whom he was wedded in March, 1833. She died 
July 15, 1845, and on January 5, 1847, Judge Clark married Mary Jane 
Lewis, a sister of his former wife. Judge Clark died December 12, 
1882. 

Judge Jacob Smith, who is referred to in the above biography, 
was appointed judge of the eleventh judicial circuit in 1861. Judge 
Smith was born in Virginia, March 3, 1816. His parents emigrated to 
Kentucky while he was quite young and settled near Columbia. Judge 
Smith's boyhood was spent on the farm but he utilized every spare 
moment for books and study. Manhood found him possessed of a very 
good English education. During the *' Florida War" against the 
Seminole Indians, Judge Smith served as a volunteer. Returning 
home in 1838, he began his study of law, which he mixed with school 
teaching in order to acquire the means to pursue his studies. In Jan- 
uary, 1839, was married to Frances P. Crews, of Marion county, Ken- 
tucky. Judge and Mrs. Smith came to Missouri in 1846 and settled 



HISTOKY OF LINN COUNTY 187 

in Linn county. For several years thereafter Judge Smith gave his 
attention chiefly to farming, but during the winter months he taught 
school and continued his favorite study of the law. He was elected 
on the Whig ticket to represent Linn county in 1850, then was elected 
probate judge of Linn county, which position he filled four years. The 
first Mrs. Smith died October 6, 1857, and in the spring of 1859 Judge 
Smith was married again to Jane T. Hickman, of Linn county. The 
judge was a staunch friend of the Union from the start of the political 
trouble in the sixties. At the election in February, 1861, Judge Smith 
was chosen as one of the delegates to represent the eighth senatorial 
district in the convention which met at JeiYerson City the 28th of that 
month for the purpose of "Considering the existing relations between 
the government of the United States, the people and the government 
of the different states, and the government and people of the state of 
Missouri." During the spring and summer of 1861 Judge Smith was 
actively engaged in aiding in the organization and equipment of the 
Eighteenth and Twenty-Third Regiments of Missouri Volunteer In- 
fantry; was elected and commissioned the first lieutenant-coloael of 
the Twenty-Third Regiment. This position he resigned for the pur- 
pose of taking charge of the duties of circuit judge of the eleventh 
judicial circuit. This appointment had, at the suggestion of Judge 
Clark, been made by Gov. H. R. Gamble. Judge Smith served until 
January, 1864, when he was succeeded by Judge R. A. De Bolt. Judge 
Smith was slain by a body of raiders that invaded Linneus the night 
of January 9, 1865. He died bravely, with a musket in his hand, 
endeavoring to protect the citizens. A leader of the raiders was riding 
along on a stolen horse. Judge Smith raised his gun, fired and mor- 
tally wounded the man. Then he started towards the court house 
where some arms were stored and shouted to the citizens to come along 
and arm themselves and fight for their homes. But just as the brave 
judge reached the court house some of the raiders fired on him and he 
fell as the result of wounds that caused his death two days later. 

(Taken from History of Grundy county, Missouri, 1881.) 

Hon. R. a. DeBolt 

Rezin A. DeBolt is a native of Fairfield county, Ohio, born January 
20, 1828. Reared on a farm, his time up to his seventeenth year was 
divided between agricultural pursuits and acquiring an education in 
the common schools of the county, the first of which was the founda- 



188 HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 

tion of his present rugged and vigorous constitution, and the last the 
beginning of future attainments. 

In January, 1845, in his seventeenth year, he was apprenticed for 
three years to a tanner, served liis time and followed his trade for a 
few years, and in the meantime gave his nights to study, "many times 
and oft" burning the "midnight oil," as he eagerly pored over dry 
volumes of legal lore. Ceaseless diligence and tireless study were at 
last rewarded, and in February, 1856, the whilom tanner's apprentice 
was admitted to the bar, to practice in the courts of Ohio. Two years 
he practiced in his native state, then following the tide of immigration, 
which was flowing rapidly westward, he joined the throng, hoping to 
take the tide "at the flood which leads on to fortune." Arriving in 
Missouri, he settled in Trenton and began the successful practice of 
his profession in 1858. 

The following year he was appointed commissioner of common 
schools of Grundy county and was elected to the same office in 1860, 
but still continuing his practice which the duties of the said office did 
not interfere with. 

When the dark clouds of dreaded Civil War first hovered over the 
land, he was among the first to come to his country's aid, and his voice 
grew strangely eloquent when he raised it in behalf of the Union and 
the Stars and Stripes. 

In 1861 he recruited a company ; was elected captain in the Twenty- 
Third Missouri Volunteer Infantry. At the head of his men he par- 
ticipated in the battle of Shiloh and was jcaptured April 6, 1862, and 
held prisoner until the following October. His health here became im- 
paired and he resigned his commission in 1863, but again entered the 
United States service in 1864 and was commissioned major of the 
Forty-Fourth Missouri Volunteer Infantry, remaining until mustered 
out in August, 1865. 

In November, 1863, he was elected judge of the circuit court of 
the eleventh judicial circuit, which office he held by re-election until 
January 1, 1875, and by his impartial rulings won many encomimiis. 

In 1877 Judge DeBolt again entered the arena of political life as a 
candidate for congress, and after an exciting and bitter fight, was 
elected a member of the Forty-Fourth Congress, as a Democrat, de- 
feating his opponent by 217 votes. Since the expiration of his term in 
congress, he has given his entire attention to his large law practice. 
He is independent and outspoken in his advocacy of what he believes 
to be right. By hard battles against desperate resistance he has won 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 189 

liis way to his high position in the esteem of the people among whom 
he lives. 

Judge DeBolt has been twice wedded. His first marriage was to 
Miss Maria M. McVleery, of Fairfield county, Ohio, near Lancaster, 
June 19, 1849. By this marriage they had a family of six children, 
three only of whom are living. Mrs. DeBolt died February 4, 1869. 
His second marriage was to Miss Laurestine U. Dinsmoor, a native of 
Canada, but reared in New York. The ceremony was performed Octo- 
ber 12, 1869. Five children have been the issue of this union, all living. 

Judge DeBolt has a fine residence in the southeast portion of the 
city, with grounds covering ten and one-half acres. Handsomely laid 
off with shade trees and shrubbery in front of the house. With his 
wife and family gathered around it makes one of the most pleasant 
and comfortable homes in Trenton. 

Judge Gavon D. Burgess was elected judge of the circuit in 1874. 
The Democratic convention that nominated him was held at Brookfield. 
Judge Burgess was born in Mason county, Kentucky, November 5, 1833, 
was reared and educated in his native state ; read law in the office of W. 
H. Cord of Flemingsburg. After studying with Mr. Cord for four 
years Judge Burgess began the practice of his profession at Flemings- 
burg in 1854. Formed a partnership with Salucius Garfield, a distant 
relative of President James A. Garfield. Judge Burgess dissolved the 
partnership in 1855 and came to Missouri, located first at St. Joseph; 
removed to Milan in the spring of 1856 and began the practice of law 
there ; came to Linneus in the spring of 1866 and practiced successfully 
until his nomination and election as circuit judge. Judge Burgess 
remained on the bench until he was chosen by the people of his state 
supreme judge, in the year 1892. He died holding that important 
position. Judge Burgess was married to Delia Trimble, daughter 
of Robert Trimble, of Fleming county, Kentucky, in March, 1855. There 
was one child, a son, who died in infancy. Judge Burgess was a 
prominent member of the Masonic fraternity. 

Judge William W. Rucker was judge of the twelfth judicial circuit 
(formerly the eleventh) from 1893 to 1898, when he was elected to 
congress and is still occupying that position. He was born in Coving- 
ton, Virginia, February 1, 1855, educated in the district schools and 
came to Missouri, October 3, 1873; served as prosecuting attorney of 
Chariton county from 1887 to 1892; resides at Keytesville. 

Judge John Pollock Butler succeeded Judge Rucker. Judge Butler 
was born in Allegheny county, Pennsylvania, October 13, 1846 ; educated 
in common schools and at Iron City Commercial College, Pittsburg, 



190 HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 

Pennsylvania; came to Missouri in 1865, located at Milan; served iij 
the Sixth Corps, army of the Potomac during the Civil War as private 
and corporal; upon his return from the war Judge Butler read law 
and was admitted to the bar of Sullivan county, March, 1867 ; enrolled 
in supreme court of Missouri at St. Joseph, August term, 1870; to 
circuit and district courts of the United States in 1875, and in the 
supreme court of the United States in 1880; was presidential elector, 
second district in 1888 ; elected judge circuit court in 1898 ; re-elected in 
1904 without opposition. 

Judge Fred Lamb was born in Eandolph county, Missouri, June 
11, 1872 ; was admitted to the bar, June 12, 1896 ; elected to the circuit 
bench of the twelfth district November, 1910, for a term of six years ; 
was married to Miss Katherine Hood, at Arrow Rock, in Saline county, 
June 11, 1902. Resides at Salisbury. 

The first senatorial district in which Linn county was included 
was composed of Macon, Livingston and Linn counties. In 1842 Grundy 
county was added. In 1853 the senatorial district was changed and 
became known as the tenth senatorial district, composed of Macon, 
Chariton and Linn counties. In 1865 Sullivan and Putnam counties 
were added to the district and Macon taken off. In 1881 Putnam county 
was taken from the district, leaving Chariton, Linn and Sullivan. It 
was then known as the sixth senatorial district. At present the sixth 
district is composed of Chariton, Linn, Livingston and Sullivan counties 
and had a population of 86,806, according to the census report for 1910. 

Benjamin L. AVliite, Democratic, is state senator from the district, 
having been elected in 1910 without opposition. He resides at Mar- 
celine, and is a lawy^er by profession. 

Linn county is in the second congressional district, which is 
composed of Chariton, Carroll, Grundy, Linn, Livingston, Monroe, 
Randolph, and Sullivan counties. The population of the district in 
1910 was 171,135. W. W. Rucker, Democrat, was elected to congress 
in 1910 by a vote of 21,090. Haley, Republican, received 16,122 votes ; 
Tobey, Prohibitionist, 447; Campbell, Socialist, 251. 

The Democratic congressional committee of the second district 
is as follows : 

W. M. Farrell, chairman, Paris. 
James Lowell, secretary, Moberly. 
Dave Buckley, treasurer, St. Catharine. 
Carroll county, W. R. Painter, Carrollton. 
Chariton county, M. W. Anderson, Keytesville. 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 191 

Grundy county, M. G. Kennedy, Trenton. 
Livingston county, John McBride, Chillicothe. 
Monroe county, W. M. Farrell, Paris. 
Eandolpli county, P. V. Vasse, Huntsville. 
Sullivan county, George E. Reinhard, Pollock. 
Linn county, Dave Buckley, St. Catharine. 

Following is the Republican congress committee of the second 
district : 

Chairman, Roy H. Monier, Carrollton. 
Secretary, C. W. Reeves, Milan. 
Treasurer, Jacob S. Walters, Stoutsville. 
Carroll county, Roy H. Monier, Carrollton. 
Chariton county, John Legendre, Salisbury, 
Grundy county, A. G. Knight, Trenton. 
Linn county, F. W. Burke, Laclede. 
Livingston county, Randal R. Kitt, Chillicothe. 
Monroe county, J. S. Walters, Stoutsville. 
Randolph county, L. W. Kelly, Moberly. 
Sullivan county, Charles W. Reeves, Milan. 

The Democratic central committee of Linn county is as follows : 

Chairman, Dave Buckley, St. Catharine. 

Secretary, Dr. Fred Peery, Brookfield. 

Treasurer, John Hetrick, Laclede. 

Baker, Pon Adamson, St. Catharine. 

Benton, north, J. I. Harmon, Browning. 

Benton, south, Virgil Lee, Purdin. 

Bucklin, George Bell, Bucklin. 

Brookfield — First ward, M. Y. Rusk, Brookfield. Second ward — 
C. W. Green, Brookfield. Third ward — J. F. Peery, Brookfield. Fourth 
ward — T. P. Burns, Brookfield. 

Clay, J. A. Peery, Linneus. 

Enterprise, Ralph Leonard, Browning. 

Grantsville, F. A. Trumbo, Linneus. 

Jefferson, John Hetrick, Laclede. 

Locust Creek, John L. Bowyer, Linneus. 

Marceline, East, Thomas Adair, Marceline. 

Marceline, West, Thomas Ludden, Marceline. 

North Salem, East, Thomas Ball, Winigan. 

North Salem, West, M. W. Gooch, North Salem. 



193 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

Parson Creek, A. J. Botts, Meadeville. 
Yellow Creek, D. J. Buckley, St. Catharine. 

The Eepublican central committee of Linn county is as follows: 

Chairman, F. W. Burke, Laclede. 

Secretary, H. W. Lomax, Laclede. 

Treasurer, W. B. Flowers, Meadeville. 

Baker, Dan Tliudium, St. Catharine. 

Benton, North, C. E. Reinhart, Browning. 

Benton, South, S. S. Hale, Purdin. 

Brookfield, 1st ward, L. W. Rummell, Brookfield. 

Brookfield, 2nd ward, W. J. Carlon, Brookfield. 

Brookfield, 3rd ward, C. K. Hart, Brookfield. 

Brookfield, 4th ward, E. Carey, Brookfield. 

Bucklin, R. S. Kathan, Bucklin. 

Clay, E. E. Buckman, Meadeville, 

Enterprise, C. I. Grice, Purdin. 

Grantsville, F. E. Cassity, Purdin. 

Jackson, F. E. Woolf, Browning. 

Jefferson, F. W. Burke, Laclede. 

Locust Creek, B. H. Mullins, Linneus. 

Marceline, East, Wm. Sternitzky, Marceline. 

Marceline, West, Gr. W. Bigger, Marceline. 

North Salem, East, Henry Thudium, St. Catharine. 

North Salem, West, J. W. Head, Browning. 

Parson Creek, W. B. Flowers, Meadeville. 

Yellow Creek, L. Cutler, St. Catharine. 

Population of Linn county in 1910 by townships and wards: 

Baker township 996 

Benton township, including Purdin village and part of Browning 

town 1,452 

Browning town (part of) , 485 

Total for Browning town in Benton township, Linn county, 

and Duncan township, Sullivan county 629 

Purdin village 337 

Brookfield township, including Brookfield city 6,536 

Brookfield city .^ 5,749 

AVard 1 1,319 

Ward 2 1,814 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 193 

Ward 3 1,538 

Ward 4 1,078 

Bueklin township, including Bucklin city 1,661 

Bucklin city 790 

Ward i 441 

Ward 2 349 

Clay township 1,608 

Enterprise township 404 

Grantsville township 774 

Jackson township 1,151 

Jefferson township, including Laclede city 1,746 

Laclede city 740 

East ward 324 

West ward 416 

Locust Creek township, including Linneus city. 1,776 

Linneus city 882 

Ward 1 470 

Ward 2 412 

Marceline township, including Marceline city 4,572 

Marceline city 3,920 

Ward 1 1,750 

Ward 2 1,241 

Ward 3 929 

North Salem township 950 

Parson Creek township, including Meadeville city 1,486 

Meadville city 580 

Yellow Creek township, including St. Catharine village 681 

St. Catharine village 127 

At the presidential election in 1908 Linn county cast 3,000 votes for 
Bryan, Democrat ; 2,974 for Taft, Republican, and 77 for Debs, Social- 
ist; Chafin, Prohibitionist, received 40 votes. 

Following are the incorporated towns and villages in Linn county : 

Brookfield, third class. 

Browning, fourth class. 

Bucklin, fourth class. 

Linneus, fourth class. 

Laclede, fourth class. 

Marceline, fourth class. 

Meadville, fourth class. 



194 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

Purdin, village. 
Eversonville, village. 
St. Catharine, village. 
Postoffices of Linn county : 

Boomer, Brookfield, Browning, Bucklin, Fountain Grove, Laclede, 
Linneus, Marceline, New Boston, North Salem, Purdin, St. Catharine. 
Linn county newspapers : 
Brookfield, Argus, Democratic; C. W. Green. 
Brookfield, Budget, Republican; H. C. Myers and N. E. Hannan. 
Brookfield, Gazette, Republican; Martin & Martin. 
Linneus, Bulletin, Democratic; H. J. Wigginton. 
Linneus, Linn County News, Republican; D. B. Ormiston. 
Marceline, Mirror, Democratic; E. J. Conger. 
Marceline, Journal, Republican ; Alden Lyle. 
Bucklin, Herald, Independent; W. E. Windle. 
Laclede, Blade, Republican; John Jones. 
Meadeville, Messenger, Independent; C. E. Mc Williams. 
Browning, Leader-Record, Independent ; Joseph Nickell. 



CHAPTER NO. XVI 

Brookfield, by Charles Willis Green — Marceline, by Clarence M. Ken- 
drick — Bucklin, by George L. Joyce — Linnens, since 1882, by D. 
B. Ormiston — Browning, by Senator E. B. Fields — Laclede, by 
Oscar F. Libby — Purdin, St. Catharine, Meadeville and Other 

Toivns of the County. 

Brookfield is located on land that was once called "the Scatters," 
as has been referred to in the description by Mrs. Kate Tooey. Along 
Elk Creek, south of the track, the grass grew rank and high, affording 
hiding places for all sorts of game. It was a famous place for duck 
hunting, and was frequented by sportsmen who came a long distance 
to enjoy the excellent shooting. 

The Hannibal and St. Joseph Railroad was completed in February, 
1859. Brookfield was laid out July 20 of that year. This was done 
under the direction of Maj. Josiah Hunt, land commissioner for the 
railroad company. The division headquarters, shops, etc., had been 
temporarily at Thayer, but with the completion of the road it was 
decided to move headquarters a little to the west. John Wood Brooks, 
a civil engineer from Boston, surveyed the town, which was named in 
his honor. So Brookfield was marked down on the map, and "^the 
Scatters" passed out of mind. 

Engineer Brooks was further recognized by four streets of the 
town, which were named "John," "Wood," "Brooks" and "Boston," 
all crossing Main street. 

Shortly after the town was laid out the railroad company began 
the erection of a hotel and dining house just west of Main street. When 
ready for occupancy Capt. E. P. Dennis took charge of this establish- 
ment, being ably assisted by his wife, who was the first female resident 
of Brookfield. All trains stopped at Brookfield for dinner. 

Among the first residents of Brookfield were Captain and Mrs. 
Dennis, Mr. Hurd, Patrick Kerrigan, Mr. Landrigan, Thomas Bresne- 
hen, Cornelius Slaughter, Jacob Van Meter, Frederick C. Loring, Henry 
Steinhelver, James Proctor, Michael Gannon, Michael McGrail, Ed 
Stephens, John McCormick, Charles Davis, first train dispatcher; Rad 

195 



196 HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 

Dennis, James Tooey, W. T. Snow, Augustus Turner, A. J. Tillotson. 
Michael Quinn, John L. Houck and John McGowan. The two latter 
came in on the first train. 

James Tooey came from St. Catharine in July, 1860, and built the 
first store in Brookfield. It was of two stories, located on Brooks 
street, between Main and Livingston, lot six, block ten. Mr. Tooey 
opened up a good stock of general merchandise, and earned the honor 
of being the first merchant in the new town. 

The Brookfield postoffice was established in August, 1860. James 
Tooey was appointed postmaster by President Buchanan. 

The first white child born in Brookfield was a son of Mr. and Mrs. 
Cornelius Slaughter, the date being January 7, 1860. Captain Dennis 
acted as god-father for the baby Brookfielder, and insisted that Brook- 
field should be a part of its name. So it was christened William Brook- 
field Slaughter. 

Frank Bernard and Nellie Mathews, employed at Captain Dennis' 
hotel, were the parties to the first marriage in Brookfield. It was quite 
an event with those enthusiasts who were engaged in building a new 
town. The wedding occurred in the fall of 1860, and was witnessed by 
everybody in the hamlet. Squire Samuel Sumner officiated. 

Brookfield enjoyed the benefits of prea,ching by able ministers from 
the first. Even when there were but two or three families some devoted 
priest or pastor would visit the new settlement and expound the Word 
of God. The Eev. Father James Hogan, now Bishop Hogan of Kansas 
City, was among the first to visit the place, and was warmly welcomed 
by the warm-hearted Irish people who constituted early Brookfield. 
The Catholic congregation at first met at Landrigan 's boarding house, 
and here the devoted churchman performed the rites of the church and 
ministered to his flock. Father Hogan will long be remembered with 
tenderness and love for his service to the little colony struggling to 
make its way in a new land, far from home and kindred. 

The first Catholic church at Brookfield was completed and dedi- 
cated in August, 1860, Father Hogan officiating. It was the first church 
building in the town. 

Miss Lizzie Clark taught school in her father's residence in 1861. 
The first school in the town proper was taught by Miss Lizzie Renick, in 
the spring of 1863. The schoolroom was over Tooey 's store, on Brooks 
street. There were 15 pupils. 

The first public school house in Brookfield was completed in 1865 
on site where is now the C. H. Jones residence. Soon afterwards a 
dramatic company came to Brookfield and gave a performance in the 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 197. 

building. It was the first entertainment of the kind and everybody 
turned out to see it. 

Dr. Banning was the first physician to locate in Brookfield. He 
came in January, 1861, and had his office in the Myers house. Drs. 
Shook and Eider practiced here during the Civil war. 

Up to June, 1863, all the houses in Brookfield were either of frame 
or logs. In that month James Tooey completed a brick building on the 
northwest corner of John and Livingston streets, now standing and 
occupied by the widow. 

The Brush Creek Bridge disaster occurred March 1, 1881. In this 
some of the best citizens of Brookfield lost their lives. A passenger 
train from the east, due at Brookfield at 3 a. m., was wrecked near 
Bevier. Brookfield was notified of the accident and a special train was 
made up to go to the relief of the injured. There were some 15 or 20 
men on the relief train, including Drs. Wood, Rear and Waters. A 
broken rail caused the derailment of the relief train at Brush Creek. 
Dr. Wood and W. S. Hallett, one of the bridge men, were instantly 
killed. Others were injured so badly they died soon after. The total 
casualties resulting from the accident were six dead and from ten to 
fifteen wounded. 

The First Banquet and Reunion of the Old Settlers of Brookfield 
occurred at the Central Hotel, June 2, 1888. The programme of the 
meeting was as follows : 

Social reunion from 8 to 9 :30 p. m. ; Invocation, Rev. J. P. Finley, 
D. D. Toasts, W. D. Crandall, Sr., presiding — "Brookfield in the Six- 
ties, ' ' W. D. Crandall ; ' ' Bench and Bar of the Olden Time, ' ' Hon. A. 
W. Myers; ''Merchants of the Early Days," John Ford; "Early 
Churches of Brookfield," Rev. J. P. Finley, D. D.; "Early Schools of 
Brookfield," Geo. W. Martin; "Reminiscences," C. B. Simpson, J. A. 
Arbuthnot, L. S. Bowden, L. A. Smith, James Tooey and others; "Our 
Host and Hostess and Our Guests," Hon. J. A. Arbuthnot. 

BROOKFIELD, THE METROPOLIS 
By Charles W. Green 

To us Brookfielders now of the warp and woof of affairs it is a 
fascinating story, that of the childhood, youth and maturity of Brook- 
field — fascinating to the seven thousand souls who love her name. 

Brookfield, the metropolis of Linn county, as well as of North 
Central Missouri, is one of the cities of the commonwealth which is 
more than generously favored by a kind hearted Nature, in that she is 



198 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

and may continue to be the most beautiful city of homes in interior 
Missouri. Men may build monuments; men may rear great columns 
celebrating victories in war; men may make boulevards o'er which 
other men may drive wonderful horses and screaming machines, but 
men do not build the trees. They do not make the blue grass in the 
broad meadows that lie at our feet. Men do not make the topography 
of the country surrounding Broofield ; the rich soil, just rolling enough 
to be safe from flood. Men do not build the streams and timber on all 
sides of us which guard us from the winds and storms that carry terror 
to the hearts of less favored climes. 

Turning from those primitive days of Brookfield, those days of 
the sixties, seventies, and even the eighties, what a change do we find 
in what is now the metropolis of North Central Missouri ; this rapidly 
growing Brookfield, wdth the business streets teeming with traffic and 
hurrying with people ; with new buildings going up on every hand — 
surely the scene under Brookfield 's smiling summer sky is a joy for- 
ever. It is indeed a vivid impression of growth that strikes the be- 
holder. On the beautiful residence additions surrounding the commer- 
cial center of Brookfield the people look down and see the liveliest mart 
in the state, size considered. Then when one at this season of the year 
hears the song of the hammer and saw the whole day long — more houses 
for more people is the impression. Here in progressive Brookfield 
everything is on the move. There is no idleness. The people and the 
town grow at the same time. Indeed, Brookfield is filled with the 
romance of progress and success. 

Nature's best endowment of a city consists in the bestowal of those 
climatic and topographical conditions which contribute to the public 
health. The healthfulness of a city is a guarantee of its prosperity, 
and capital cannot be more profitably invested than in guarding it. The 
past year has been one of great progress in conduct of the sanitary 
affairs of the city. 

The population of Brookfield differs in many important particulars 
from that of any city in the West. There are no ''floaters," drawn 
hither by temporary causes. The population of Brookfield is stable. 
The merchants, manufacturers, professional men, mechanics, and labor- 
ers are Brookfield men. They own their own homes. In good times 
and bad they are with us because they belong to us. We doubt whether 
there is another city in the country of equal size, wealth and import- 
ance of which these observations are as true as they are of Brookfield. 
Eecent heavy additions to the population of the city are of a class that 
soon become inseparably attached to the city. 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 199 

A stranger coming to Brookfield is amazed at the number of her 
lovely lawns and elegant homes. In this feature she is excelled by no 
city of equal population on the continent. This is as it should be. It 
evinces a love for home life that is characteristic of every people that 
is prosperous and happy. 

In many cities both east and west it is characteristic of the busi- 
ness men to become so absorbed in the pursuit of wealth, as to entirely 
lose sight of the comforts of home. It is not so in Brookfield. While 
her business men and her professional men are money makers, they 
build beautiful homes. Many of these homes are known far and wide 
for their magnificent splendor. Costing in the aggregate thousands 
of dollars, they attest in a striking manner the disposition of their own- 
ers to use riches purely for the comforts and pleasures they afford. 

The Municipal 

The year 1880 found L. A. Smith mayor, who served for three 
terms, and was succeeded by P. H. Peck. Both have been gathered to 
their fathers. Smith dying in Brookfield in 1907, while Peck died in 
Chicago. Dr. A. C. Pettijohn was elected mayor in 1888 and was again 
mayor a decade later. Dr. Pettijohn, after being a resident of Brook- 
field for over a quarter of a century, is now superintendent of Asylum 
No. 2, at St. Joseph. 

Since the years of the eighties up to the present time others who 
have filled the office of mayor were John Ford and Dr. G. N. Lantz, 
deceased ; J. M. Sheets, John Goldman, A. A. Bailey, John McCartney, 
Richard N. Bowden, Dr. Pettijohn, R. S. Brownlee, while the present 
mayor is E. M. Lomax. 

During the past quarter century many of Brookfield 's well known 
citizens have served on the city council, including George Brown, J. C. 
Gardner, Anthony Questa, James Dillon, Henry Tooey, Joseph Dick, 
Crozier Armstrong, Joseph Banning, Dr. Robert Haley, James F. 
Turner, J. S. Reger, L. W. Niles, J. F. McElwain, C. W. Green, L. W. 
Rummell, Hiram Dewey, George S. Wilber, Charles Spurgeon, Dr. 
I. V. Powers, B. F. White, Thomas Halliburton, S. P. Hartman, E. P. 
Banning, A. W. Baker, John Waldhaus, and others. The present mem- 
bers of the council in this year 1912, are R. S. Brownlee, M. C. Post, B. 
R. Woodlief, Henry West, D. B. Skene, J. M. Sheets, Frank Dick, Gil- 
mer Banning, while C. K. Hart is city attorney, J. D. McLeod, city 
clerk ; L. W. Rummell, cemetery commissioner ; J. W. Jones, park com- 
missioner; Charles Lowary, street commissioner; J. W. Lacy, water 



200 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

commissioner ; James Taylor, chief of police ; E. C, Brott, police magis- 
trate; George Zielir, fire chief. 

In 1888 the first Board of Trade was organized in Brookfield, com- 
posed of Brookfield 's most public spirited citizens at that time. L. S. 
Bowden was elected president; J. F. McElwain and J. C. Post, vice- 
presidents; C. D. Bennett, secretary; W. D. Crandall, corresponding 
secretary, and E. J. Wheeler, treasurer. 

About 1905 the Brookfield Commercial Club was organized, suc- 
ceeding the Merchants' Association. Those who have served as presi- 
dents of the Commercial Club are Dr. A. C. Pettijohn, Henry Tooey, 
Thomas Halliburton, while Charles W. Green is now the president, with 
Charles H. Jones secretary. 

The greatest thing the Commercial Club has brought to pass was 
in being the means to the end of locating the Brown Shoe Factory by 
raising in four days $70,000 as a bonus. Since that time the Com- 
mercial Club has worked with the city administrations in the interest 
of a greater and better Brookfield, until today Brookfield has more 
miles of street paving than any city in Missouri of her size — something 
like twelve miles; has the "white way" illumination in the business 
section — and the beautiful "white way" was brought to pass through 
the efforts of the Commercial Club, encouraged by the progressive city 
administration. 

The first in the way of public utilities for Brookfield was the elec- 
tric light system, organized in the year of 1890 by a company composed 
of R. J. Wheeler, R. T. Smither, M. Y. Rusk, H. B. Daggett. For many 
years the system was of a primitive nature, but some three or four 
years ago P. W. Markham, the technical electrical engineer, was given 
entire supervision of the plant, and today it is second to none in Mis- 
souri in the matter of good service. 

The next in the way of public improvements was the waterworks 
system, by the city, after bonding for $35,000. Water mains were laid 
in nearly every portion of Brookfield, business and residence sections. 
From the point drive well system Brookfield has the finest water in 
the state, absolutely free from contamination. As the city has grown 
more bonds have been voted and the mains and supply increased. 

Following electric light, water works, and sewerage, came the in- 
stallation of a splendid gas system by a private corporation from Ma- 
comb, Illinois, of which Mr. L. D. Kelsey is the manager. It would be 
impossible to have a more perfect system or quality of gas for lighting 
or heating purposes. This system was put in in 1901, and the service 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 201 

has been increased some evei\y year, while this year extensive improve- 
ments and extensions are being made. 

Banks and Bankers 

Everyone appreciates the fact that banking institutions are a 
necessity. In the organization of modern commerce and industry the 
need for sound and substantial banking institutions is constantly em- 
phasized in the active transaction of daily business and the welfare of 
a trade center depends in a very large measure upon the character and 
adequacy of the facilities furnished by the leading institutions of 
financial character in the city. Therefore, the status of a city commer- 
cially is very largely estimated by the quality of its banks, and there is 
no more accurate measure of the comparative prosperity of a business 
center than the volume of business transacted through its financial 
institutions. 

Brookfield from an early day has held an excellent position among 
Missouri towns in respect to the character of its banks, and as its 
business has increased the demands made upon the resources of these 
institutions have continued to become heavier, yet the banks have 
always proven equal to the requirements of the business situation and 
have gained an exceptionally high reputation for the quality of the 
banking advantages they offer to the corporations, firms and individual 
depositors, who represent the business activity of this community. 

The history of the banking business in Brookfield extends back to 
1867, when T. D. Price & Co. established the first banking house in the 
present site of the Brownlee bank. Mr. Price was a genial gentleman ; 
came here from Hannibal. His silent partner lived in New I'ork City, 
a Mr. Sherrell. Two years later, however, there was a shake up in the 
first bank and its successor was Price, Brownlee & DeGraw — Judge 
Brownlee and Dr. DeGraw. This firm only did business for a short 
time. Price and DeGrraw retiring, after which it was succeeded by the 
firm W. H. Brownlee, banker, which continued the only bank in Brook- 
field until the banking house of H. DeGraw made the second. Its loca- 
tion was on the present John LaPierre site. This DeGraw bank was 
organized in 1876, with H. DeGraw, president, and W. H. DeGraw, 
cashier. Just after that time was organized the third bank, named the 
Bank of Brookfield, with Joseph Aldrich, president, and W. H. Lock- 
wood, cashier. A. D. Scott soon afterwards, however, became president 
of this bank and John Ford, cashier. With the death of Mr. Scott, J. 
E. Huffaker was made president. This made three banks for Brook- 



202 HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 

field, and the next move, in 1878, was the consolidation of the first and 
second one, and the birth of the present Linn County Bank. In its 
organization W. H. Brownlee was made president; W. H. DeGraw, 
cashier, and "Walter Brownlee, assistant cashier. This organization did 
business for several years, all through the eighties and into the nine- 
ties on the old Brownlee banking corner. In 1893 there came a division 
between the Brownlee and the DeGraw interests, and Judge Brownlee 
retired as president. Then the Linn County Bank was moved to the 
DeGraw corner across the street, and Dr. DeGraw elected president. 

About this time the Brownlees began to make preparations for 
opening a new bank on their old corner, which was done in 1893 under 
the name of the present Brownlee Banking Co., of which W. H. Brown- 
lee was president ; S. E. Crance, vice-president ; Walter Brownlee, cash- 
ier, and R. S. Brownlee, assistant cashier. The directors and stock- 
holders of the Brownlee Bank then, in addition to the above, were 
Henry Tooey, R. N. Bowden, N. G. Ransom, T. P. Oven, Lan Rummell, 
Oliver Cramer, Thomas Halliburton, and George Howard. The present 
officers are: Walter Brownlee, president; R. S. Brownlee, cashier; H. 
W. Craig and John Cornish, assistant cashiers. 

Some twelve years ago the old Linn County Bank reached the 
' ' second generation ' ' epoch in its history. A younger set of men took 
charge in the management of its affairs. First came George W. 
Stephens, Jr., all his life a banker, and was made cashier, succeeding 
W. H. DeGraw, who was at that time made president. Charles H. 
Jones at the same time was made assistant cashier, and later came E. 
M. Lomax as the active vice-president. Dr. DeGraw, one of our pioneer 
bankers, was by acclamation made president of the Linn County Bank, 
upon the death of his brother. Some five years ago the lamented Dr. 
DeGraw retired and E. M. Lomax was elected president, while C. H. 
Jones was elected cashier and W. W. Martin assistant cashier. George 
W. Martin is first vice-president, but not in an active capacity. Messrs. 
Lomax, Jones and W. W. Martin practically conduct the aif airs of the 
Linn County Bank now. The directors at the present time are: R. X. 
DeGraw, G.' W. Martin, R. R. Smith, C. L. Spalding, E. M. Lomax, C. 
H. Jones, W. W. Martin. The capital stock is $100,000. 

It was in 1887 that a new factor appeared in the banking circle of 
Brookfield. R. J. Wheeler, from before the war up to this time, was a 
merchant and trader in Bucklin. He got rich — not as rich as Croesus, 
but rich for men in country towns. He longed to come to Brookfield, a 
larger town, and finally did so, establishing the Wheeler Bank after 



HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 



203 



building Wheeler block on the corner of Main and Wood streets He 
organized the bank in 1887, with himself as president and Thomas 
Flood, now deceased, cashier. Mr. Flood afterward ran for county 
recorder, and was elected. E. M. Lomax, formerly in a clerical position 
with the Laclede Bank in St. Louis, was made Mr. Flood's successor as 
cashier of the Wheeler Bank, which position he filled until 1900, when 
he retired to accept the vice-presidency of the Linn County Bank 
Thereupon Mr. Harry Markham, formerly of Laclede, was made cashier 
of the Wheeler Bank and Eobert Wheeler, Jr., assistant cashier. At 
the present time, however, Eobert Wheeler is president, while Mr. 
Markham is still cashier. 

Li the year 1904 James Moore conceived the idea of establishing 
a bank m South Main street, and did so, with himself as president and 
the son, Joseph Moore, as cashier. Each year has seen this, the fourth 
bank, grow in business and popularity, as have its older competitors. 
The only bank failures ever in the historv of Brookfield were that 
of the first banker, T. D. Price, and seventeen vears ago that of the 
Bank of Brookfield, the latter during the panic. 

Thus it will be seen that Judge William H. Brownlee and Dr 
Hamilton DeGraw and W. H. DeGraw, now deceased, were the Nestors 
m the banking business here in Brookfield. All three were interesting 
men. Dr. DeGraw was a sage-like man, perhaps better read than any 
man m Brookfield— had a philosophical sort of mind, was a student of 
the Bible as well as political economy; of philosophy as well as occult 
science. Judge Brownlee was of a poetical turn of mind. He loved 
fiction, was fond of the classics, and as an ''Indiana man" was partial 
to Gen. Lew Wallace and James Whitcomb Eiley. ^Yhile he was an 
able lawyer, the public for years associated him in its mind as a banker, 
W. H. DeGraw was a banker personified. He was fond of home life,' 
and a most entertaining, chivalrous character. 

A Bank Eobbery 

There are some interesting reminiscences connected with the his- 
tory of the banking business in Brookfield. None the less was the rob- 
bing of the Bank of Brookfield about thirty years ago, a few years after 
it was established. One lazy, summer afternoon, just before closing 
time, when the bank was located where is now the Model Cleaners, four 
men rode into town on horseback from the northeast. They came 
in on Wood street and dismounted in the alley in the rear of the bank. 



204 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

There was at that time not a half dozen people upon Main street 
in the block where the bank was located. One held the four horses and 
three put on masks and went 'round to the front door of the bank. 
One of these stood in the door with a big revolver swinging in his hand, 
one covered Cashier Ford with one gun and Miss Carrie Scott, the 
assistant, with the other as they ordered them to hand over. The third 
carried a grain sack and put in his time filling it. Daniel Young, a 
shoemaker, now deceased, was the first to get action with his rifle. This 
aroused the people and as the robbers broke away, under the pressure 
of spur to their horses, they were a mile or two out of town in a north- 
easterly direction before a posse headed by Colonel Arbuthnot, G. R. 
Critchfield, Harry Moore, and others were in pursuit. All of northeast 
Missouri reached by wire was notified of the robbery. Two or three 
times the posse overtook the robbers and exchanged shots, but it was 
about ten days before they were captured in the brakes west of I^rks- 
ville. The robbers were four young men, the Mason boys, who for- 
merly lived in Y^ellow Creek township, ranging in age from 18 to 24. 
The leader was married. All were speedily tried and sentenced to the 
penitentiary for 25 years by Judge Burgess. One by one they were 
pardoned out, on account of consumption, two of them by Governor 
Francis. All of them have since died. Most of the money was recov- 
ered — all but about six thousand at the time. The young men were of 
good families, but had been students of yellow-back literature, and took 
it into their heads to imitate the James boys. The robbery made Brook- 
field famous for a time. 

In commercial lines Brookfield has had and still has several mer- 
chants who have contributed to the upbuilding of the city as a trade 
center. They have been Oliver Cramer, S. P. Hartman, John Walker, 
Thomas Halliburton, Gus Tooey, J. H. Foss, R. N. Bowden, while in 
later years have come B. F. "White, L. W. Bundy, L. W. Rummell, Jerry 
Noland, Cole and Fred Halliburton, G. F. Duker and others. Conspic- 
uously in their time were the lamented Charles Green, druggist, and 
Henry Tooey, the clothier ; the latter having built up a great business 
for the firm still bearing his name. 

One of the particularly ^'hig things" of Brookfield is the Linn 
County Fair, which has contributed to making the- county metropolis 
famous. Frank Dick is president; L. W. Rummell, secretary, and 
Thomas Halliburton, treasurer, while the other directors are R. S. 
Brownlee, J. H. Fuoss, Gus Gannon and R. N. Bowden. Mr. Gannon 
has made the fair what it is to the harness horse world. 



HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 205 

Newspapers 

Brookfield lias three newspapers, The Gazette, The Argus and The 
Budget. The oldest paper is The Gazette, which was established forty- 
six years ago, in the early days of the town, by Crandall & Ward. For 
many years it was conducted by W. D. Crandall, who was appointed 
postmaster in the early nineties, when he sold the paper to Martin & 
Jones. J. W. Jones sold his interest to Col. George W. Martin, the 
editpr, who in turn sold the interest to his brother, J. V. Martin. The 
publishers of The Gazette now are Martin & Martin, the senior brother, 
George W,, being postmaster at the present time. However, The 
Gazette has been a stepping stone to the office of postmaster, for J. V. 
Martin served one term, while J. W. Jones served two terms. Thus, 
three men connected with The Gazette have been postmasters. 

The Argus was founded in 1883 by Charles W. Green, its present 
editor and publisher, when he was but a boy. The chief strength of 
The Argus lies in the fact that it has been, early and late, a '* booster" 
for Brookfield. 

The Budget, the third paper, was established by A. P. Crosby 
seventeen years ago, and from that day to this has had a dozen or more 
editors and publishers, the present ones being H. C. Myers and Nellie 
Hannan. 

Within the past three decades a dozen other newspapers have been 
born and died in Brookfield, including the Neiv Era, Chronicle, Union, 
Times, Eagle, Press and Times No. 2. 

In many respects the world has been revolutionized since The 
Argus with its hundred eyes came to keep track of its movements and 
record its doings. Men in every walk and station of life have come, 
have played their various parts. Fame has crowned them and they 
have passed on. Within the life of The Argus new issues have devel- 
oped in the arena of politics, new questions and theories have com- 
manded popular attention and consideration, and conditions have ap- 
peared not dreamed of in the philosophy of thirty years. The silent 
pages of the files of The Argus, as well as its older sister. The Gazette, 
tell an inspiring story of the long years that are gone ; tell of births, 
of marriages, of deaths ; tell of the material and spiritual progress of 
this city and county from time to time — year in and year out advocat- 
ing the cause of Brookfield. 



206 HISTORY OF LINIST COUNTY 

Public Schools 

While Brookfield had "good" public schools prior to 1880, it has 
been since that that marked progress has been made; and particularly 
during the past fifteen years. 

It was about 1880 that Brookfield began to outgrow the one school 
building, notwithstanding it had six rooms. There was a demand for 
more room and naturally all conceded that the South Side was entitled 
to school facilities. Accordingly, the building in the Third ward, to 
the extent of two rooms, was erected in 1882 and named the Adams 
School, in honor of George W. Adams, a Brookfield pioneer, then 
county clerk. Still there was urgent demand for more rooms, and in 
1888 two more rooms were added, to be followed by two more in 1901. 

The same year it was decided that the Fourth ward must have a 
school building. A proposition to bond was voted upon, carried, and a 
substantial building went up on a site formerly a city park. Hence the 
name, Park School. It was in 1895 that Brookfield had outgrown three 
public schools of sixteen rooms. Every ward in the city had a school 
building except the Second. The question was agitated by the people, 
encouraged by the press, and as a result the proposition was voted 
upon, carried, and after a site was purchased from Colonel Dake, the 
Finley School, named after that departed pioneer and parson, the 
lamented Rev. J. P. Finley, D. D. Along about this time Mrs. Julia 
Hickman, a good woman, and a teacher in the First ward school, died, 
and in her honor the school was named Hickman. 

Having four ward schools — but few cities in Missouri of Brook- 
field's size can say as much — ^we began to feel important. Brookfield 
must have a high school, a large, modern structure, centrally located. 
As usual, the press began the agitation. Everybody endorsed the idea, 
the school board submitted the proposition to bond for fifteen thousand 
dollars, which was carried by a large majority. 

During the past dozen years many improvements have been made 
upon the school property. The Brookfield College property, with a 
whole block of ground and residence at the rear of the building, was 
bought by the school board twelve years ago for thirteen thousand dol- 
lars. At a low estimate the High School property, since improvements 
have been made thereon, is worth forty thousand dollars. The campus 
is one of the high sites of the city, surrounded by shade trees, while 
the building is one of the finest in north Missouri. The public library 
is in the High School, and the laboratory, class rooms, auditorium, 
large hallways and splendid ventilation, together with the steam heat 



HISTOEY OF LIX^^ COUNTY 



207 



and toilet rooms, makes a high school in every way worthy of the name. 
Each year there is an effort to make the faculty a little stronger, and 
each year there is an increase in the attendance not onlv by students 
within the district but from those outside, the tuition for the latter 
being just enough to cover cost. 

The present members of the Board of Education are : T. M. Bres- 
nehen, president ; Dr. J. S. Evans, vice-president ; E. M. Lomax, treas- 
urer; N. E. Wanamaker, secretary; R. J. Beauchamp, Banner CamD- 
bell, F. D. Sanford. ^ 

Citizens who have served in years gone by upon the board, as a 
labor of love, are as follows : Judge W. H. Brownlee, Col. J. A. Arbuth- 
not, Henry Tooey, J. G. Banning, George Anderson, all deceased. 

J. U. White was elected superintendent of the Brookfield public 
schools about fourteen years ago and has given splendid satisfaction— 
so much so that he has been re-elected time after time by the full vote 
of the board. He came from Jefferson City to Brookfield, accompanied 
by an accomplished wife and interesting children. Mr. White has a 
state reputation as an educator. On coming to Brookfield he at once 
put new life and new ideas into our public school system. He attends 
National and State teachers' associations and is always on the lookout 
for new ideas for the Brookfield schools. He and his good wife have 
proven splendid acquisitions to Brookfield society, socially and morally, 
and it is the concensus of opinion that Superintendent White, as tlie 
official head of the Brookfield public school system, is the right man in 
the right place, for during his regime of fourteen years wonderful 
advancement has been made in our schools. 

Thus you have the condensed story of the public schools of Brook- 
field. Do you blame the people of Brookfield for being proud of them? 
Five public school buildings, all modern structures, each upon a large 
campus, each with steam heat and sewerage connection, each complete 
within itself, with a splendid corps of instructors and a strictlv up-to- 
date superintendent and a board at all times, as a "labor of love," 
doing the best they can to make each school year better than the pre- 
ceding one. 

The Churches 

Most every sect of religious belief is represented in Brookfield, 
there being altogether eight churches within the city. While there are 
a few primitive structures, in the main the Brookfield churches are 
modern and handsome houses of worship. In fact, the Catholic, the 
Episcopal, the Presbyterian and the two Methodist and the Christian 



208 HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 

would be a credit to a city four times the size of Brookfield; imposing 
in architectural beauty, either stone or pressed brick, with slate roofs, 
cathedral windows, etc. 

The first church organization in Brookfield was that of the Cath- 
olic, forty-nine years ago — the first church in the way of a little mission 
being erected in 1861 on the present Catholic church site. The little 
church was dedicated by the Rt. Eev. Bishop Hendricks, of St. Louis, 
in 1868 — after the war was over. 

Rev. J. J. Hogan, whose ashes now rest just west of town in the 
convent grounds, was in charge. The organized members of the Cath- 
olic church were Michael McGowan, Thomas Bresnehen, Michael Gan- 
non, William O'Neill, Michael McGrail, John Curtin, Patrick Tooey, 
Michael White, John McCormick, Michael McKinney and James Tooey. 
All have been gathered to the Great Father except one, Mr. McCor- 
mick, still a resident of Brookfield. 

The new and magnificent Catholic church was erected about six- 
teen years ago through the untiring energy of Rev. Father Tormey, 
who has been located here since 1878, although now retired, the Rev. 
F. C. Cummins being the present pastor. 

The first Protestant church organized in Brookfield was the Con- 
gregational, which was in May, 1865. Rev. Charles H. Pratt was its 
first pastor. For many years, through the seventies and into the 
eighties, the Congregational church was the most flourishing in the 
city. Its members in those days were ''the people," or at least thought 
they were. Those were the days when Major G. N. Blossom used to 
toss five dollar bills on the collection plate, and Deacon Franklin used 
to lead in prayer meeting. During that period in the history of the 
Congregational church some very able divines were called, one after 
another, as its pastor. As the writer remembers there were Revs. Har- 
rah, Plumb, Ham, Foster, Cole, Warren, Todd, Watt, and others. But 
once so flourishing the Congregational church is now but history — 
having died a decade ago for want of support. 

The First Presbyterian church was organized in 1866, and the erec- 
tion of the building began in October, 1869. Those who took the in- 
itiative way back in 1866 in the organization of the Presbyterian society 
were A. W. Myers, Lavina H. Myers, Ephriam Banning, Louisa Ban- 
ning, William Donaldson, Ira Johnson, Otho Reams, Martha Day and 
S. P. Huston. All have long since passed away. 

The first pastor was the Rev. Jonathan P. Finley, a man who after- 
wards as a preacher and educator enters into much of the best history 
of Brookfield. He was the church's pastor for a quarter century or 



HISTOEY OF LINX COUNTY 209 

more, retiring to devote his entire time to the Brookfield Academy, 
afterwards the Brookfield College. When Dr. Finley died the college 
died also, to all purposes, for he was its guiding spirit and its inspir- 
ation. The new Presbyterian church was erected some thirteen years 
ago under the guidance of the pastor at that time, the Rev. E. C. Jacka. 
It was burned some six years ago and the second new church edifice was 
erected under the leadership of the present pastor, Rev. W. C. Atwood. 
The Rev. Mr. Atwood is popular with his church and the public; looked 
upon as a strong preacher and energetic church worker. The Presby- 
terian church is now among the strongest in the city in membership. 

The First M. E. Church of Brookfield was organized in the fall of 
1866 at the residence of C. P. Hyatt by the Rev. Shumate, at that time 
presiding elder of the Hannibal District. The first church was erected 
in 1870, under the pastorate of Rev. W. F. Clayton. This building was 
destroyed by a tornado in 1876, but was rebuilt the following year at a 
cost of about $3,000. The second edifice was dedicated with great cere- 
mony, the Rev. C. C. McCabe, D. D., being present. During all the 
years from the dedication of the M. E. church up to the time it was 
torn down to make room for the present handsome and modern church 
there were several divines, remembered by some of the older inhabit- 
ants ; there being Revs. Myers, Weam, Cooper, Ferril, Messner, Stock- 
ing, Seeley, Cox, Poland, Canada, Casely, Sapp, Sappenfield, Robbins, 
Wilson, Fay, Chase, while the Rev. Edgar Reed is the present pastor. 
The present church was erected in 1900 and is one of the handsomest 
in north Missouri. 

Next came the organization of the Baptist church in 1867, with the 
Rev. E. J. Scott as pastor. The organization disbanded soon, however, 
and was again organized in 1874, when Rev. S. L. Cox served as pastor 
for two years, after which it again disbanded. 

It was in 1883 that the Baptists re-organized and this time erected 
a church on the corner of Main and John street, which burned two 
years ago. Since that time the Baptist society has gradually grown 
until now, under the pastorate of Rev. 0. H. L. Cunningham the church 
has become strong numerically and in its influence in the community. 
The Baptists contemplate the erection of a new and modern church 
this year. 

While the birth or rather the organization of the Episcopal church 
does not date back further than 1874, its charter members were among 
some of the most prominent pioneers of Brookfield. On the present 
site of the elegant Grace church, of stone and Episcopal style of church 
architecture, first stood the Universalist church way back in the six- 



210 HISTOEY OF LINN" COUNTY 

ties. It was a frame affair with a very high steeple. One by one the 
Universalists moved away from Brookfield and when the Episcopa- 
lians organized they purchased the Universalist edifice. The original 
members of the Episcopal church here in Brookfield were John Bolton, 
Joseph Gamble, Mr. and Mrs. George Johnson, Mr. and Mrs. Vosburg, 
Mrs. Gil son, Miss Fannie Gilson, Mr. and Mrs. Huxtable, Miss Emma 
Brickell (now Mrs. Eugene Rawn), Mrs. Fantum, Major and Mrs. De- 
Graw, Mrs. M. Graff, Miss Armstrong, and Mrs. Willis. The church 
at that time was consecrated by Rt. Rev. Bishop Robertson, and its 
rectors since those days have been Rev. E. Talbott, now Bishop of 
Pennsylvania ; Rev. Robert Talbott, now of Washington, D. C. ; as well 
as Revs. Flower, Sellers, Birnback, James and Merriman. The rock 
church was erected about fourteen years ago and dedicated by Bishop 
Atwell. One June 11, 1902, occurred an event long to be remembered 
by all present, being the ordination of Rev. Frank Arthur McElwain, 
who grew up here at Brookfield, and graduated at the head of his class 
with great honors in a college of divinity in Minnesota. The present 
rector is the Rev. Oscar Homburger and the vestrymen are John Mc- 
Cartney, R. N. Bowden, C. W. Green, L. E. Dewey and James Turner. 

In the latter eighties, a few years after the coming of R. J. 
Wheeler to Brookfield, the Southern Methodist people began to discuss 
the idea of erecting a church, and it was in the spring of 1893 that 
the prominent site on North Main street was purchased while Rev. 
Browning was pastor. The following year the foundation was in and 
in 1895 the church proper was erected, but not dedicated until 1897. 
This church and ground is one of the most valuable church properties 
in the city, having cost about $12,000. Rev, K. T. Davis is the present 
pastor. He is a forceful preacher and a ver.y effective church worker, 
very popular with the membership, and held in high esteem by the 
citizens generally. 

The Christian Society was organized in 1887, and the first church 
erected on South Main street the same year. The first preacher was 
Rev. Colston, since which time there have been several pastors; the 
Rev. R. E. L. Prunty remaining the longest. 

The present pastor is Rev. Ben F. Hill. He is well liked by the 
members and the citizens of the community. Rev. Mr. Hill is a zealous 
worker for his church and stimulates the members thereof. 

The United Brethren Church, in the Third ward, was organized 
about fifteen years ago and the present pastor is Rev. A. C. Tudor. He 
came to Brookfield last autumn and is an interesting man of good 
ability and an untiring church worker. 



HISTORY OF LINX COUNTY 211 

Brookfield has a bright future before her, and those who have 
high hopes have abundant grounds for their confidence. The city has 
had a career of unexampled prosperity during the past five years. The 
present year is witnessing more substantial progress than any of its 
predecessors, and enterprises already under way give assurance of 
more advancement during the year that is still young. The city is 
rapidly increasing in population, and the volume of emigration flowing 
in is constantly growing. Business houses are increasing in number 
and size, assuming really metropolitan proportions. 

No where can there be found better fraternal brotherhoods, teach- 
ing and practicing the lessons of the golden rule; institutions more 
universal in their application to the advancement of morality and 
humanity; bringing sunshine and happiness into the homes of the 
afflicted and the needy, than right here in Brookfield. 

The membership of the Brookfield churches of the different re- 
ligious faiths and the membership of the fraternal societies vie with 
each other in the work of charity and benevolence, and the upbuilding 
and moral training of citizens, as they trample every obstacle to 
brotherly love and consign bitterness and strife to oblivion. And never 
forgetting to inculcate into the minds and hearts of their children 
gratitude and love; gratitude to God for permission to enjoy good 
health, happiness and the blessing of good government ; love for fellow- 
men, loyalty to state and country, Brookfield is a good town to live in. 

The City of Marceline, Missoubi 
(By Clarence M. Kendrick) 

The decade from 1880 to 1890 will go down in history as the great- 
est ten years of railroad construction on the American continent. It 
was during this period of unparalleled industrial progress that the 
great trans-continental systems stretched their ribbons of steel over 
mountain, plain and hill, annihilating distances, connecting the Atlan- 
tic and Pacific seaboards and laying down at the doors of the people 
of the hamlets of interior America the rich products of the Orient and 
the Occident. 

The total mileage of railways in the United States standing at 
93,296 miles in 1880, increased by leaps and bounds until in 1890 it 
had reached an aggregate of 166,706 miles, disclosing the enormous 
increase in ten years of 63,410 miles. 

Among these great enterprises was the Atchison, Topeka & Santa 



212 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

Fe Railway, operating exclusively west of the Missouri river, until 
the late 80 's, and practically the only competitor in the rapidly 
developing western country of the Union Pacific, the pioneer of the 
great plains roads. The Santa Fe, with 2,510 miles of rails in 1883, 
increased its mileage in the eleven years following until it was operat- 
ing, in 1904, 9,345 miles ; and the more important and by far the most 
expensive part of this increased mileage was what is known as the 
"Chicago Extension," running almost directly as the crow flies in a 
northeasterly direction from Kansas City to Chicago, connecting the 
Great Lakes region with the Land of Sunshine beyond the snowy 
peaks of the Rocky mountain ranges. Experience in railway operation 
had developed the fact that the welfare and comfort of employes, and 
the care and preservation of the vast machinery of the industry, 
demanded division or terminal points along the lines at a distance of 
one hundred miles, one from the other; and on the line of the Santa 
Fe's proposed extension, one hundred miles northeast from Kansas 
City, was an open, upland prairie, stretching away to Yellow creek on 
the west and the Chariton river on the east, dotted here and there with 
the homes of the farmers, carpeted with bluegrass, ornamented with 
the white blossoms and the bright red fruit of the wild strawberry and 
the blue-bell of the fleur-de-lis. Over this beautiful prairie the cattle 
roamed unmolested and the land produced luxuriously almost without 
effort. Scattering cottonwood and locust trees cast their shade here 
and there, principally around the spots where the farmers had located 
their dwellings, and it is a tradition among the farmers that this high 
and sightly prairie ridge has been for years, and still is, the playground 
of the lightning, for scarcely a tree stood on the site of Marceline but 
showed the marks of the thunderbolts. As if to verify the tradition, 
discussed around the hearthstones of the early settlers, that some 
peculiar attraction at the spot where Marceline stands invites the fatal 
lightning stroke, many damaging conflagrations have resulted in the 
town from that cause and some loss of life from the deadly bolts has 
been noted in and near the town. But if the high location of the city 
invites the destructive force of the elements, nature seems to have 
made compensation in the healthfulness which the site, with its natural 
drainage to the streams east and west, provides. 

One day, in 1886, the farmers awoke to meet the faces of strange 
men, men who talked business incessantly and who wanted to buy 
options on their land. They offered good prices, put up forfeits, got 
signed contracts and before the end of the year the civil engineer with 
his force of rodmen, chain-bearers and transitmen was on the ground 



HISTORY OF LINA^ COUNTY 313 

running the preliminary surveys for the Chicago, Santa Fe & Cal- 
ifornia Eailway, which, when completed, was to become a part of the 
great "Santa Fe System." Events developed with kaleidoscopic rap- 
idity in the new enterprise. Construction work began at both ends of 
the new line, and in 1887 the Missouri division point was platted and 
on the 28th day of January, 1888, the first town lot was sold in the 
new town of Marceline. On the 6th day of March following the town 
was incorporated. The county court of Linn county, after making the 
order of incorporation, appointed A. D. Reynolds, mayor ; J. H. Perrin, 
W. S. Thomas, George Levan and J. E. Dorsey, aldermen; Joseph 
Turner, marshal, all to serve until the regular election of officers. The 
mayor appointed seems not to have met the approval of his con- 
stituents, and so an early election was provided for by an ordi- 
nance, and at that election J. W. McFall, one of the earliest and best 
known lawyers of Marceline, was elected mayor; J. A. Runyon, mar- 
shal; Jeff Hurt, police judge; C. D. Watkins, city attorney; Joseph 
Hemmings, clerk. The city being divided into two wards. Dr. Garner 
Ladow, W. S. Thomas, Dr. J. H. Perrin and J. E. Waller were elected 
to represent these wards. Within six months from the date on which 
the first lot was sold the new city had a population of 2,500 people. The 
lands of the town site were owned and sold by an auxiliary corporation 
known as the "Santa Fe Town and Land Company," and to its local 
offices in Marceline came an ex-lieutenant governor of Kansas, D. W. 
Finney, as sales-agent, and with him came Joseph Hemmings, still a 
resident of Marceline and at the date of the writing of this chapter 
superintendent of the mines of the Marceline Coal & Mining Company. 
The incorporation of the town, however, was not the only event of in- 
terest which came with the date March 6, 1888, for on that day the first 
child was born in the new town; and that child, Claud C. Dail, the 
second son of Mr. and Mrs. R. J. Dail, is yet faithful to the place of 
his birth; and having led to the hymeneal altar Miss Vina McDonald, 
yet lives in the city with his young wife, a popular and prosperous 
young business man. With the opening of spring in 1888 came re- 
markable activity in Marceline. It had gotten its name, of Spanish 
origin, through the request of one of the directors of the new road. 
The Christian name of the wife of this official was Marcelina, and as a 
courtesy to her the new town was called "Marceline." True to its 
western name, the town took on all the appearances of the cities of the 
West. Following the construction gangs who were building the rail- 
road line came the usual boomers and the atmosphere was surcharged 
with energy and hustle. Business houses and residences arose like 



214 HISTOEY OF LIXN COUNTY 

magic on the corn and wheat stubble of the year before. Vigorous 
young business men, merchants, professional men, promoters, coal 
prospectors, gamblers, and all the heterogenous mixture of people who 
make up the earliest population of new towns were here. The man 
from the West, with white sombrero ornamented with leather band, 
touched elbow with the Missouri farmer. The eastern college man, 
with his derby hat and coat of latest cut, who had taken Horace 
Greeley's advise — ''Go west and grow up with the country," forgot 
his college yell and exchanged his fraternity pin for a bone collar but- 
ton and all entered enthusiastically into the building of a new city. 

The original plat of the city soon became too small for the am- 
bitious builders, and the Marceline Town & Land Company's addition 
was platted by E. M. Randolph, James E. Adamas, Gov. Finney and 
others. Taking a part in the platting of this addition as well as in 
the platting of the original town site was Judge C. G. Bigger, the 
veteran Linn county civil engineer, at the time of this writing city 
engineer, having in charge the paving of the streets of the city of 
Marceline, whose site he knew as an unbroken stretch of prairie grass 
less than a quarter of a century ago. By the end of the year 1888 
the railroad company had its round house and tracks ready for use and 
operation, and early in 1889 began in a modest way the operation of 
trains. The trainmaster and the chief dispatcher with their forces 
were located at Marceline. The division superintendant, whose juris- 
diction then and for many years thereafter included the entire Chicago 
extension, was located at Ft. Madison, Iowa. The need of coal at con- 
venient locations along the new line became manifest and prospecting 
began at Marceline as well as at other points. Captain C. U. Wheelock, 
an experienced prospector, was employed to sink a shaft in search of 
coal and finally located a promising vein at what is now know as Mine 
No. 1 of the Marceline Coal & Mining Company's property. Local 
capital at once began to interest itself in the work and it was deter- 
mined to sink a shaft, and that shaft is still in use as the air shaft of 
Mine No. 1. The first spade of earth in starting was turned by Mrs. 
Lillian Green, wife of W. C. Green, one of the promoters, and the shaft 
was called Lillian Shaft No. 1, in her honor. A peculiar superstition 
prevailed among the miners at that time. They believed bad luck 
would follow the enterprise if the first shovel of dirt was not turned 
by the delicate hand of a lady and so, in deferrence to their wish and 
that belief, Mrs. Green turned the spade of earth over that virgin vein 
whidi since that day has yielded millions of tons of coal to the com- 
merce of the nation. As soon as the mine was in working condition, the 



HISTORY OF LINX COUXTY 215 

Kansas & Texas Coal Company purchased tlie property from its local 
projectors and began preparations for extensive operation. This com- 
pany operated the mines until October, 1893, when it passed into the 
hands of the C. J. Devlin interests who operated it under the name of 
the Marceline Coal Company until the year 1907, when Mr. Devlin's 
property was swept away in a financial crash which carried with it 
many large banks and trust companies of the West, and the mines, 
Nos. 1 and 2, No. 2 having been opened at a later date, were closed out 
in a court of bankruptcy and passed into the hands of the Marceline 
Coal & Mining Company, which still operates them. During all the 
changes and vicissitudes of the properties Joseph Hemmings has been 
its superintendent, and under his masterful direction the properties 
are still yielding enormous quantities of fuel to drive the wheels of 
commerce. West of the City another coal mining venture was launched 
by J. L. Landreth, a West Virginian. His beginning, though humble, 
was nevertheless determined and as a result of his effort the third coal 
mine is in successful operation, making its sales almost exclusively to 
local consumers. 

All lines of business were flourishing by midsummer of 1888 and as 
the people looked forward to prosperity and commercial progress they 
turned their attention to the building of substantial homes, churches 
and schools. During the first six months of the town's existence the 
two branches of the Methodist Church, the Church of the Disciples, the 
Baptists, the Catholics and the Cumberland Presbyterians had organ- 
ized congregations. All the protestant denomination met for worship 
in Crumley's hall, on Gracia avenue, and the Catholic congregation 
held their services in Senrick's Hall, on Lake street. J. W. W. Waugh 
was the first pastor of the Church of the Disciples, and while a minister 
by profession and eloquent in the pulpit, he seems not to have worked 
exclusively at his trade, but found time to build a reputation as a real 
estate dealer and, like David Harum's parson, was apt in swopping 
horses. W. Toole was the first pastor in charge of the Southern Metho- 
dist organization, while J. E. Eutledge directed the destiny of the 
earliest congregation of the First M. E. Church. These two branches 
of the Methodist faith maintained a separate existence in the town 
until the year 1908, when the two congregations were merged into one 
and. the splendid, modern church edifice at the corner of Kansas and 
Santa Fe avenues, with its many enduring and ornamental features, 
is the result of that merger. An interesting coincidence of the first 
Methodist Episcopal Church congregation here is the fact that on 
October 8, 1888, its first church structure was dedicated and at that 



216 HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 

dedication Rev. J. D. Mendenliall preached a strong sermon, as we are 
advised by the local papers of that date. Twenty-four years there- 
after, on March 4, 1912, the same J. D. Mendenhall, older in years but 
still the progressive, enthusiastic man of affairs, stood in the new 
church building, as pastor of the congregation, and saw dedicated to 
the cause of Christianity, the modern house of worship just com- 
pleted, that handsome monument to his enterprise and that of his co- 
workers in erecting it. 

St. Bonaventure's Church soon began actively to prepare for 
erecting their church home. Rev. Thomas J. Burke was the first pastor 
and presided over the parish until succeeded by Rev. P. J. CuUen. Re- 
lieved of his charge here, Father Burke went to Liberty, Missouri, 
where he died December 22, 1903, at the age of 42 years and was 
buried there. Later his remains were disinterred and removed to Mt. 
Killard cemetery, near Marceline, where a great shaft of solid con- 
crete marks the final resting place of that able man. St. Bonaventure's 
Church building was erected in the fall and winter of 1888 and 1889. 
Work was commenced on its foundation on September 10, 1888, and 
the cornerstone was laid by the Rt. Rev. J. J. Hogan, Bishop of the 
Diocese, on October 1, 1888. Rev. J. W. Martin came to organize the 
Baptist congregation and though long since gone from the field of his 
activity here, his work remains a tribute to the thoroughness of his 
effort and that congregation, in common with all the others enum- 
erated, is now worshiping in commodious and comfortable church 
edifices. True no great spires pierce the skies rising above piles of 
marble and polished granite, glittering in the sunlight, to proclaim to 
the world congregations of great wealth, yet in the hearts of the devout 
people who worship there these humble shrines become palaces of 
sincerity, and so we may believe them to appear to the All seeing eye 
of Him who has promised to note even the sparrow's fall. While law- 
lessness, violence and crime have at times invaded the community and 
stalked boldly through its streets and avenues, yet a strong and safe 
moral tone has always prevaded the social atmosphere, giving assur- 
ance of the triumph of good citizenship in the end. 

It was the purpose of the Town Site Company that the principal 
business section of Marceline should be located on Santa Fe avenue 
and that avenue was made one-hundred feet wide for that reason, and 
here all the early business houses opened their doors. The Marceline 
Mirror and the Marceline Journal began business on this street, the 
first issue of the Journal being sometime in the month of June, 1888. 
Dr. J. A. Smith, now deceased, and J. W. Northcott, a real estate dealer 



HISTORY OF LINN COUXTY 217 

of Kansas City, Missouri, were its first editors and publishers. All of 
the early files of this paper having been destroyed by fire, the exact 
date of its initial issue cannot now be fixed. It was launched as an 
organ of the Republican Party and has continued as such in its edi- 
torial policy down to the year 1912, and is now published by Alden 
Lyle. The first issue of the Mirror was given to the people on Thurs- 
day, August 9, 1888 by Ruede & Dodge. It started out prudently, mak- 
ing no promises except that it would print the news and support the 
policies of the Democratic party. Later Mr. Dodge sold his interest 
in the paper to Harry Brodrick, a newspaper man of Osborne, Kansas, 
and the paper continued under the direction of Mr. Ruede and Mr. 
Brodrick until 1894, when Walter Cash, of Macon, Missouri, purchased 
Mr. Ruede 's interest and came with his family to Marceline. Mr. 
Cash, now living in St. Joseph, Missouri, was and is a minister of the 
Primitive Baptist faith, a businessman of splendid qualifications and 
a man of determination and enterprise. He brought with him to the 
Blirror office the ''Messenger of Peace," a secular publication and it 
was issued from the office in Marceline and went to its subscribers in 
all parts of the world, being one of the few publications of its character 
published. Later Mr. Cash purchased the interest of Mr. Brodrick in 
the paper and in 1897 sold the business to E. J. Conger, one of the 
editors and proprietors of the Linneus Bullet'm. Mr. Conger came to 
Marceline, took charge of the publication and has continued in the 
position ever since with the exception of a short interval when he was 
engaged in newspaper work elsewhere. 

In November, 1888, the newspapers announced in large headlines 
that Marceline was soon to have an electric lighting plant, a telephone 
system, school buildings and street cars. The electric lights came in the 
following year and were the first in Linn county. The telephone system 
arrived in due time, true to the prediction; two large, double-story, 
eight-room school buildings arose on the prairie to serve the children of 
Marceline, but up to the good year of 1912 no street car has clanged its 
bell to disturb the peace of the ambitious city and the "syndicate of 
wealthy citizens of Scranton, Pa., who were anxious to build the line" 
probably found other investment for their surplus wealth and so passed 
the street car dream of early Mar,celine. The first term of school was 
for seven months during the fall and winter of 1888 and 1889; five 
teachers were employed to instruct the pupils of Marceline, shown by 
the first enumeration to number 306; in 1912 twenty instructors are 
employed for a nine months' term with an enumeration of 1,267. 

In the winter of 1888 and 1889 a theater building of brick and of 



218 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

ornamental construction, was erected at the corner of Kansas and Santa 
Fe avenues, in the very heart of what was then thought to be the prom- 
inent business section, and at this time the city claimed a population of 
3,300; but notwithstanding the fact that fifty mercantile establishments, 
seven hotels, two banks, five livery stables, the newspapers, drug stores 
and other commercial enterprises were located either on or contiguous 
to Santa Fe avenue, commercial interest began to center in a district 
farther south and soon business houses were erected on Lake street, 
five blocks south of Santa Fe and on the east side of the railroad tracks. 
At the time of Marceline's beginning, Linn county had adopted what 
is known as the Local Option law and no licensed saloons were in 
operation in the county. The Lake street business district was soon 
doing a thriving business with *'speakeasys," as the places were 
known, where liquors were illegally and surreptitiously sold and along 
with them were the gambling dives and dan,ce halls, all more or less 
open and operating in violation of law. Many prosecutions resulted, 
with but few convictions, and a condition of lawlessness prevailed. A 
number of murders resulted from drunken brawls, fights were frequent, 
and in 1891 the citizens of the county returned to the license system 
and saloons were opened in Marceline. 

About this time the people were startled by reports that women, 
returning alone to their homes in the north part of town, after night- 
fall, were being frightened by the strange actions of some unknown 
miscreant. A number of women, passing along dark stretches of side- 
walk, had been horrified when a man stepped suddenly out of the 
darkness, threw his arms around them and escaped before his victims 
could sound an alarm. At first the matter was regarded as a hoax 
and Marceline's "Jack the Hugger" was the joke of the period, but 
soon the complaints came in from sources so authentic that the facts 
could no longer be kept under cover. It was whispered that the fiend 

was a negro, and the finger of suspicion pointed to one , 

an employe of W. A. Cannon, then a lumber merchant of Marceline, 
later a banker and drygoods merchant of Edina, Missouri, and now 
deceased. Because of the unpleasant notoriety many of these occur- 
rences never became public, but enough was known to thoroughly 
arouse public indignation. Armed men secretly patroled the district 
but without result. Finally, as a last resort, a brave young woman 
then teaching in the Marceline public schools volunteered to take the 
lonely stroll with the understanding that three men, one of whom was 
her brother, should see her start, keep within a safe distance of her 
and be ready to act if an occasion arose. All necessary precautions 



HISTORY OF LIXN COUNTY 219 

were taken to avoid the possibility of the trap being discovered and 
the brave young decoy was advised that at no time, from the moment 
of her starting to her return home, would she see her protectors, but 
she was assured that they would be constantly near her. She accepted 
the conditions and walked forth alone in the darkness night after 
night, and though she could neither see nor hear her guard, yet so 
great was her confidence and so firm her faith that she afterwards 
declared she felt not the slightest fear. But the cunning of the quarry 
was apparently equal to the shrewdness of the hunters, and the young 
woman strolled unmolested. The venture, however, was not without 
results for the occurrences ceased entirely after the unsuccessful effort 
to capture the vagabond. Whether or not the suspicions as to the 
identity of the fiend were well founded will probably never be known, 

but afterward paid the penalty of an assault on 

womanhood in Clark county, Missouri, and was hanged at Kahoka. 

The town, starting with prosperous business, presented a splendid 
field for speculators, and real estate values continued at exorbitant 
figures until the year 1893, when the panic of that year swept over 
the country. Marceline had but little actual capital and from the 
year 1893 until 1896 city property continuously went down until it 
sold at from one-fourth to one-sixth of the prices which had prevailed 
in earlier days. During this period the building and loan associations 
of the country were doing their most active business and hundreds of 
houses had been built in Marceline with the money of these associa- 
tions. Thousands of dollars went out monthly and at the end of 1905 
the loan companies were closing out the property by foreclosure sales. 
Lots which had sold readily at from $1,000 to $2,000 during the first 
year of the town's existence brought $200 and $300 in the period of 
the panic, and business was at a low ebb. In the meantime the business 
district had again changed and Kansas avenue from Ritchie street 
south to Gracia became, and has ever since remained, the commercial 
center of the town. On Kansas avenue, on either side of Howell 
street, within this new district, are now located the two banking insti- 
tutions of the city, the First National Bank of Marceline, with deposits 
of $325,000, and the Marceline State Bank, with deposits of $100,000. 
These banking houses are the outgrowth of the Bank of Marceline 
and the Santa Fe Exchange Bank, which, in 1896, showed combined 
deposits of $36,000. 

With the passing of the panicky days of the 90 's came renewed 
confidence, business was restored and real estate values advanced. 

Following the administrations of Mayor KcFall, Cater and Hel- 



220 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

wig, Austin N. Maupin, manager of the Marceline Mercantile Com- 
pany's establishment, was elected to the office. Mr. Maupin 's admin- 
istration was marked by careful business methods, and during his term 
what is known as the "Fire Limits Ordinance" was passed. A non- 
resident property owner had prepared to remove a large, two-story 
frame dwelling house into the middle of the block on the west side of 
Kansas avenue between Eitchie and Howell avenues. The house was 
to be used as a hotel and was already on the trucks when Mayor 
Maupin learned of the proposed move. He called the board of alder- 
men together in extraordinary session in the middle of the afternoon 
and passed an ordinance prohibiting wooden buildings within a certain 
district in the ordinance defined. The trucks were removed, and the 
house lowered back to its foundation where it rests today. Though 
still the local law, the provisions of this ordinance have been fre- 
quently violated by the unauthorized consent of mayors and town 
boards and a number of frame structures have been built and moved 
into the prohibited district, notably the Presbyterian church on Cali- 
fornia avenue, as well as many others. 

With the retirement of Mr. Maupin, W. S. Grubbs, now a stock 
dealer of Chariton county, succeeded to the office which he held until 
the election of Mayor Walter Cash. During the period of the town's 
existence, from 1888 to 1912, five men have held the office of city 
attorney under the several administrations. They were: C. D. Wat- 
kins, now judge of one of the city courts of Oklahoma City, Okla.; 
J. W. McFall, deceased; W. B. Clark, now practicing law in Ponca 
City, Okla.; B. L. AVhite, and C. M. Kendrick, who still reside in 
Marceline. 

In 1898 Walter Cash was elected mayor and under his administra- 
tion conditions improved, both in a business sense and in the moral 
tone of the town. Mr. Cash's administration early began a campaign 
for civic improvement. Ripley Square, now one of the most beautiful 
miniature parks on the entire Santa Fe system, was then dotted with 
unsightly hovels and being located in the very heart of the city, next 
to the Santa Fe station, presented to strangers passing through the 
city a most unprepossessing prospect. Bonds in the sum of $5,000 
for park purposes were voted in 1902, a part of the property was pur- 
chased from its owners, much of it was condemned and taken over by 
the city by legal process and the Santa Fe Railway, through E. P. 
Ripley, then, as now, its president, generously donated to the city 
ten lots it owned on the site and on which its grain elevator was located. 
This elevator was removed without cost to the city, the plot was 



HISTORY OF LIA^N COUXTY 221 

graded, trees planted and walks built. From time to time ornaments 
were added to the park, including a rifle cannon and mortar, relics of 
the Civil War, donated by the government of the United States, 
through the courtesy of Senator William J. Stone, Senator William 
W^arner and Congressman W. W. Rucker. Ornamental fountains were 
built from which pour living streams to soften and cool the summer air, 
and on the bosom of the miniature lake, set like a mirror in the green 
carpet of the beauty spot, aquatic fowls disport themselves, and the 
graceful movements of snow white swans ever attract and hold the 
interest of the visitor. Lounging in comfort on the spreading lawns 
of this park, beneath grateful shade, the murmur of fountains and the 
moisture-laden breezes lulling to sleep the tired senses, our people have 
reason to remember gratefully the enterprise of Walter Cash and his 
live, progressive, wide-awake administration, and later the unselfish 
interest and untiring industry of R. M. Wrenn, whose labor and effort 
have added in no small way to the attractions of Ripley Square. 

Up to the period when Mayor Cash took the oath of office the city 
was entirely without fire-fighting apparatus. Insurance rates were 
high, the fire record was bad and many of the first companies were clos- 
ing up their agencies and withdrawing from the town. Among the 
first acts of the new administration was the submission of a proposition 
to a vote of the people to bond the city in the sum of $1,500 dollars, 
the money to be used in the purchase of a ''hand fire engine." The 
proposition carried almost without dissenting votes, the apparatus 
was purchased, a volunteer fire company organzied and thus a modi- 
cum of fire protection was afforded the citizens. While the machine 
was crude and, so far as the writer is informed, it never arrived in time 
to save the burning building when an alarm was turned in, yet to the 
good housewife "next door," whose home seemed doomed, whose chil- 
dren clung in terror to her skirts, the raucous clanging of its gong was 
seraphic music. The pump was operated by hand and the men worked 
for love of home and without hope of remuneration, and that they 
saved many homes from destruction which, but for their effort, would 
have gone up in flames with the property adjoining, entitles Marceline's 
earliest fire fighting to a place in the grateful remembrance of her 
people. 

One of these early-day fires came near resulting in the undoing of 
one of Marceline's pioneer physicians— Dr. J. T. Martin. The doctor 
had come to the town with the first arivals, hung out his sign as a 
practitioner and opened a drug store on the northeast corner of Kan- 
sas and California avenues. He was a studious man, an indefatigable 



2ay HISTORY OF LIXN COUNTY 

investigator and being yet comparatively fresh from college was not 
ready to give up his researches into the mysteries of the anatomy of 
man. To more intelligently pursue his favorite subject he had pro- 
cured a human body and had the cadaver reposing in his private study 
in the rear of the drug store awaiting a favorable opportunity to 
proceed with dissection at his leisure. One night the doctor was called 
out to see a patient and his clerk having gone home, he locked up the 
drug store, put his medical case under his arm and was off to minister 
to his patient. His visit was a distant one and returning he saw a 
red glow in the vicinity of Marceline, and watching it curiously he 
rode along not specially concerned, for the reason that fires were 
not rare in Marceline, and so had lost interest in a measure to those 
not directly concerned. As it was the fashion in those early days for 
the proprietor of the burning building to be in town, as a rule, when 
the fire broke forth, and conveniently located so that he could be found 
and informed of his misfortune, and appear properly shocked and 
grieved, Dr. Martin rode in all unsuspecting, and his amazement was 
sincere when he found his own drug store was in ashes. Meantime, 
the do,ctor, one of the most popular of men up to this time, was advised 
by his friends that he could not get away any too quickly if his per- 
sonal safety was to be assured, as a mob was forming threatening 
serious bodily injury to him and the more excitable ones were talking 
lynching. In answer to his excited inquiries, the doctor was informed 
that when the flames broke out in the roof of his building, people rushed 
to the spot, and not finding him there, broke into the building with a 
view to saving his library and other personal belongings. Among the 
first articles they uncovered was the cadaver, and as it offered no 
explanation of its presence, the cry was raised that the doctor was a 
grave robber, and excitement and indignation was at fever heat. The 
physician was persuaded by his friends to remain away until explana- 
tions could be forthcoming and excitement subside. This he did, and 
he produced evidence to convince his neighbors not only that he was 
not a murderer or a ghoul, but that he had come into possession of the 
cadaver legally and honorably, and so at the end of forty-eight hours 
the doctor returned to Marceline, hung his sign again and the inci- 
dent passed. His anatomical specimen, however, perished, as did his 
library and other office belongings, for every man who had rushed to 
that fire imbued with the idea of unselfishly saving Dr. Martin's prop- 
erty, had business elsewhere as soon as he caught a glimpse of the 
figure reclining on the doctor's sofa. This incident was in 1889 and 
was followed in 1894 by one very similar in first appearances, but of 



HISTORY OF LIIS^N COUNTY 223 

vastly different results. Dr. Fox was conducting a drug store at the 
corner of Kansas and Gracia avenues and had an ice box back of his 
prescription case. One day the dealer was delivering ice to the doctor 
and noticed the lid was partially off a very long, slender box, sitting- 
nearby, and to his terror and amazement he beheld protruding from 
the box the feet of a woman. He did not stop to investigate, nor did 
he hesitate to talk, and soon the whole town and countryside were dis- 
cussing with bated breath the gruesome discovery in Fox's drug store. 
Fox was arrested, and tried in Chariton county on a charge of "body 
snatching," the fact having developed that the body was that of a 
young wonian who had then but recently died in that county a few 
miles south of Marceline. The doctor's assistant, a man of excellent 
standing in the community, told the whole story on the witness stand, 
of a midnight ride in a buggy to the lonely cemetery; of the opening 
of the grave, over which the earth was yet new ; of the return to town 
with the body between them in the buggy, and though there was no 
conviction in the case, it resulted in a radical change of the laws of the 
state of Missouri, so that now the hazard is too great, the penalty too 
severe for adventures of that kind and character. The little church- 
yard received again the poor, inanimate form so ruthlessly taken from 
its silent portals, and with the passing of Dr. Fox from the community 
the most grewsome incident in the. history of the town was allowed to 
pass from the memory of the people. Perhaps it were as well had the 
gruesome story never been retold, but as the sun ever follows the 
shadow of the rain and as the dawn of right dispels and dissipates 
the darkness of wrong, so the restraining legislation that sprang from 
this incident has fully compensated for all the heartaches that its 
presence brought. 

Thus far Marceline had struggled along, passing through the 
trials and vicissitudes incident to the early history of new towns, but in 
the early spring of 1903 rumors of important railroad additions to the 
jcity began to be heard. No one apparently knew from whence they 
came and but little credence was given them. The Chicago division 
of the Santa Fe had been divided, the eastern end being known as the 
Illinois division, the western end as the Missouri division, and in 
March of that year the announcement was made that the office of 
division superintendent of the Missouri division, general foreman of 
bridges and buildings, the division engineering department and all the 
additional forces that go with them, were to be located at Marceline 
without delay. A second story was added to the depot to accommodate 
the new offices and in that month E. J. Parker, superintendent, who 



224 HISTORY OF LINX COUNTY 

had built up an enviable reputation in connection with J. H. Banker, 
the general foreman, in construction work on the mountain divisions, 
came to Marceline to locate, and with them came T. H. Sears as train- 
master. Mr. Parker remained at Marceline as superintendent until the 
double track building, which had been started by the Santa Fe, was 
well under way, and in 1906 went to La Junta, Colorado, as general 
superintendent of the Western Grand division of the Santa Fe system, 
which position he held until 1910, when he became general superin- 
tendent of the system, with headquarters at Topeka. Mr. Parker was 
succeeded as Superintendent by T. H. Sears, who, with A. Ewing as 
trainmaster, J. H. Banker as general foreman of bridges and buildings, 
G. J. Bell, division engineer, George W. Bailey, agent, and A. L. 
Crabbs, chief dispatcher, constitute the heads of departments at the 
date of the preparation of this chapter. Since locating here the 
importance of the division offi,ces have increased to such an extent that 
more commodious quarters are required and bids are to be opened 
in Topeka, Kansas, the headquarters of the Santa Fe system, at an 
early date, on the contract for a $30,000 brick office building and pas- 
senger station at Marceline and for a $12,000 freight house. From six 
passenger trains per day in the early nineties, the business of the road 
has grown until eighteen passenger trains stop at Marceline daily, and 
over its 800 miles of double track, stretching from Chicago to Dodge 
City, Kansas, millions of dollars in freight are transported daily. 

During all the time that the Santa Fe has been in operation from 
Kansas City to Chicago, prior to 1909, the subject of water at Mar- 
celine had been a vexed question. During the dry months of each 
summer tank trains ran regularly between Marceline and Carrollton, 
to supply the demand of the railway at Marceline for water, and strong 
talk of the need of a water system began to be heard on the streets. 
The ex,cellent business administration of Wesley Ellis and L. E. Pan- 
cost were followed by the election of Dr. B. B. Putman, as mayor, in 
1908. Dr. Putman was a man of determination and a financier of long 
experience. He took his seat as mayor in May of that year and at once 
discontinued the illegal practice which had prevailed since the begin- 
ning of the town of issuing city warrants where money was needed and 
none was in the treasury, thus putting the city on a cash basis. In 
July following, $3,600 in revenue that had been realized by the city 
each year since 1891, was taken from Dr. Putman 's administration by 
the voting out of the saloons, the election occurring on July 7th of 
that year. Notwithstanding this decrease in revenue, Dr. Putman 
continued his x^olicy of drawing warrants only when there was cash to 



HISTOKY OF LINN COUNTY 225 

cover, jjursued a policy of economy, reduced the city's floating indebt- 
edness and in his general conduct of the city's affairs left a record that 
will give him place as the best executive in the history of the city 
down to his time. In November, 1908, a proposition was submitted to 
the city to vote bonds in the sum of $50,000 to erect a system of water 
works. The proposition carried with only thirty-six dissenting votes 
and the city at on,ce entered actively into the work of the construction 
of its water works. The system was completed and in operation the 
following year. Under this administration came also the first paving 
and to give the work a start two blocks were paved on Kansas avenue, 
stretching from Ritchie to Gracia avenue, and in the fall of 1911 the 
preliminary steps were taken to continue the paving to other blocks 
and to other streets. During the four years, from 1908 to 1912, a num- 
ber of industries w^ere located at Marceline. The plentiful supply of 
fuel and an abundance of water making the place attractive from a 
business view. The Standard Oil pumping station, with its great 
pumps assisting in the work of driving crude oil from the fields of 
Oklahoma, by pipe lines, to the refineries in the East, built massive 
concrete structures at Marceline and began a,ctive operation. The 
bottling works and creamery of B. McAllister & Sons began a success- 
tful business which has steadily increased. Enterprises already lo,cated 
increased their capacity and doubled their working forces and new 
business houses and handsome dwellings supplanted the temporary 
structures of early days. The Santa Fe Railway erected its library 
and recreation building for its employes on its right of way near 
Howell street, and here, through the winter months, are given lectures, 
concerts and high class theatricals by the very best talent traveling, 
without charge to the people and while Marceline was well provided 
with public parks and grounds, it remained for the year 1912 to give 
it the splendid pleasure resort in West Marceline of the Santa Fe 
Country Club Association. With the completion of the water works 
the Santa Fe Railway Company began taking water for its use from 
the pipes of the city exclusively. At the western part of the city the 
railroad owns forty acres of land on which it constructed at the town's 
beginning a great reservoir covering about twenty-two acres of the 
tract. This lake, thirty feet in depth, filled with clear, clean water, 
was formerly the source of the water supply of the railway, and when 
the railroad began to receive water from the city it abandoned the 
lake. Early in 1912 the employes of the Santa Fe began a movement 
to lease this ground, with its great lake, and convert it into a pleasure 
resort. They invited the co-operation of the citizens of the town, 



236 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

with the result that at the February term, 1912, of the Linn County 
Circuit Court at Brookfield the Santa Fe Country Club Association 
was incorporated and immediately a lease was consummated whereby 
the association came into possession of the grounds and lake of the 
railway company. The officers named in the articles of association 
were L. T. Sears, president; E. W. Tayler, vice-president, and D. L. 
Brown, secretary, and the association began at once the erection of 
a handsome clubhouse, purchased boats, planted trees and took all the 
necessary steps to beautify the grounds. This splendid resort will soon 
be thrown open to the people, but being a private enterprise can only 
be enjoyed by members of the association and their families. 

Marceline has for many years enjoyed the music of a superior 
concert band made up entirely from the ranks of its laboring men. 
The membership has contained from time to time men who had played 
in European musical organizations, and under the leadership of Frank 
Strahal has been active, progressive and a source of much pleasure to 
our people. Its open concerts in the parks delighted audiences of chil- 
dren in the years gone by and those children, grown to manhood and 
womanhood, listen to its sweet strains today while their own children 
sit by their side. True, the personnel of the organization has changed, 
but the organization itself has remained intact, increasing in efficiency 
with accumulating years. 

With the passing of the boom days came permanency in business. 
Real estate values became stable and normal; conservative, careful 
business men took the place of and superseded the speculator; legiti- 
mate amusement superseded the dance hall. But few of the original 
buildings, erected by the town's pioneers, remain in evidence today 
and what have not been razed to the ground or destroyed by flame 
have been removed to make way for better and more modern struc- 
tures. During the period from 1890 to 1900 conflagrations were almost 
of nightly occurrence and so desperate did the situation grow that 
at one time a large body of citizens, their fa,ces masked, visited a num- 
ber of houses and took therefrom suspects. The suspects were roughly 
handled and given hours to leave town and they did so. What is 
known as the "Finn case" was an outgrowth of this period. In 1898 
one John Finn was living in rooms over the Marceline Mercantile 
Establishment, at the corner of Kansas and California avenues. Other 
I)ersons dwelling in the flat one day detected fumes of burning cloth 
and an investigation was started. Though the smell of smoke was 
plain the fire could not be discovered. Finally entrance was gained to 
Finn's room, where a hole was discovered in the ceiling which had been 



HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 227 

carefully covered with paper. Gaining entrance to the open space 
between the ceiling and the tin roof the astounding discovery was 
made that a large quantity of greasy waste had been placed in this gar- 
ret and a candle lighted and set up in the waste. When discovered the 
candle had burned low and the waste was smouldering and burning. 
Officers were notified who found Finn sitting in front of a business 
house on Kansas avenue. Seeing the officer approaching him, Finn 
scented danger and broke and ran, and though followed immediately, 
he seemed for a time to have dropped from the earth. Two days after- 
ward he was found hiding in a small cellar, approached by a trap door, 
under the floor of the residence of his brother-in-law, in the south part 
of town. When the officers entered this cellar they found there not 
only Finn, the fire-bug, but a large quantity of drugs, medicines and 
toilet articles as well, evidently the result of the burglary of some drug 
store. Nothing was ever known as to the place from whence these 
articles were secured and Finn was prosecuted alone on the charge 
of arson. On this charge he went to the penitentiary under a sentence 
of fifteen years. 

Of the early arrivals in the commercial life of Marceline, but few 
remain in active business today. Of these J. Hemming, J. L. Potts, 
W. A. Campbell, W. N. Wheeler, J. A. Nickell, E. M. Randolph, Tom 
F. Hott, J. R. Wrenn, Sig Steiner, Dr. J. H. Perrin, Drs. J. S. and W. A. 
Cater and Dr. J. D. Thompson, are yet familiar figures on the streets. 

The spring elections of 1912 brought into official harness, as Mar- 
celine 's mayor, E. D. Haldeman, claims adjuster for the Santa Fe. He 
was elected on a platform declaring for reforms all along the line and 
with his administration came an increase in the number of aldermen 
by reason of the addition of new wards, making a board of eight 
members. In his initial address the new mayor made it clear that 
he believes with Carlysle that our grand business in life is not to see 
what lies dimly before us at a distance, but to do what clearly lies at 
Imnd, and entering vigorously into the performance of his duties, he 
carries with him tlie goodwill and support of the people. 

If success in the building of cities means alone the assembling of 
many thousands of people at a given spot, dwelling in congested resi- 
dence districts and transacting vast business affairs in towering build- 
ings of brick and stone and mortar, then the millions of dwellers in 
the interior cities of the world have failed. But, if it means churches 
and homes and schools and libraries and societies and parks in the 
valleys, mountains and plains, where prosperity ever breathes its 
scented breath; if it means modest business in modest structures in the 



228 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

land of live and let live, where want and hunger never come, then the 
founders of Mar,celine have succeeded in their ambition and a city 
is built. Throughout the process of Marceline's building its women 
have added in no small way to the success of the enterprise. Coming 
on the townsite when it was a literal city of tents, the wives, mothers, 
sisters and daughters have stood day by day at the side of the builders, 
ready to assist in the work and lending encouragement and hope by 
the inspiration of their presence. Men are but machines in business 
affairs of every-day life, but as evening approaches the eyes turn 
involuntarily to the never-fading beauties of home, where 

"Music on the spirit lies. 
Like tired eyelids on tired eyes," 

and where awaits him, with approving smile, the true inspiration of 
all his best effort, for ''As the vine which has long twined its graceful 
foliage about the oak, and been lifted by it in sunshine, will, when 
the hardy plant is rifted by the thunderbolt, cling round it with caress- 
ing tendrils, and bind up its shattered boughs, so is it beautifully 
ordained by providence that woman, who is the mere dependent and 
ornament of man in his happier hours, should be his stay and solace 
when smitten with sudden calamity; winding herself into the rugged 
recesses of his nature, tenderly supporting the dropping head and 
binding up the broken heart." 

BUCKLIN 

(By George L. Joyce) 

Bucklin was laid out originally on the east half of Lot 2 ; northwest 
quarter of Section 2, Township 57, Range 18, in October, 1854. William 
S. McClanahan, county surveyor, began the survey of the town on the 
eighth of the month and completed it on the eleventh. James H. Wat- 
son and Dr. John F. Powers were the owners of the land and were the 
chief promoters of the town. 

At the time of Bucklin 's creation a Major Bucklin was chief 
engineer of the Hannibal & St. Joseph Railroad, which was then in 
process of construction across the state. The town was named as a 
complement to the Major, and it was thought by the sagacious promo- 
ter, would result in the establishment of the division at Bucklin. It 
might be here remarked that many years later Bucklin also had similar 
aspirations concerning the Santa Fe Railroad, but was disappointed. 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 239 

It matters not ; the town has grown with the county and is enjoying the 
facilities of two great trunk lines of railroad and the trade of a splen- 
did farming community. All it hoped for in the way of commercial 
prosperity has been well realized. 

The original town was laid out something over half a mile north 
of the Hannibal & St. Joe track. 

Some of the railroad people used to speak of the place as Bucklin- 
ville, and it must have gone by that name on the records of the com- 
pany, for Josiah Hunt, the land commissioner of the railroad, on Aug- 
ust 1, 1859, laid out the first addition to the place, and caused it to be 
recorded as "the first addition to the town of Bucklinville. " 

Towner & Stuenkel laid out an addition in February, 1877, and 
designated it as "an addition to Bucklinville, " just as Hunt had done. 

The word Bucklinville, however, is never heard of now. The town 
is located on a ridge between the Chariton and Grand rivers. It is 
high, well-drained and healthful. 

The first structures in Bucklin were the railroad shanties. Noah 
Carter operated the first store. F. A. Davenport, son of Mr. and Mrs. 
Martin Davenport, was the first male child born in Bucklin, his birth 
occurring in December, 1855. Sarah, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Russell 
Austin, was the first girl baby born in the town. 

The first marriage was that of William Poole and Rachel Minnick. 
The ceremony occurred at the residence of Samuel Minnick in 
February, 1858, and was conducted by Squire Charles C. Clifton. 

The first school house was built in 1858. It was entirely of frame 
and cost the modest sum of $350. Squire Shannon was the first teacher. 

The Reverend Mitchell, a primitive Baptist minister, held the first 
religious services in Bucklin, in the residence of John L. Watson. 

Dr. Rider is credited with being the first physician. 

In 1858 a cemetery was laid out about half a mile north of the 
town. A United States postoflfice was established in 1859, the year the 
Hannibal & St. Joe road began operating across the state. John 
Walker was the first postmaster. 

Following the depression caused by the Civil War, Bucklin thrived 
rapidly. New stores were put up and various industries established. 
The Bucklin mills were built and put in operation by Messrs. Pounds 
& Stevenson in 1867. The plant cost between $5,000 and $6,000, and 
was the most complete of its kind in this section of the state. It diverted 
an immense amount of traffic to Bucklin. 

Bucklin was incorporated in 1866. The following board of 
trustees was appointed by the county court: 



330 HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 

J. H. Wyett, Eobert Wheeler, E. L. Carlton, Thomas Burke and 
George Sweeney. 

The failure of Bucklin to secure the Santa Fe division had a 
depressing effect temporarily; business was quiet and enterprise 
lagged. Marceline, the place selected by the road for the division, was 
only six miles south, and it naturally developed fast. People from 
Linn and other counties were hastening there to get into business while 
the floodtide of prosperity was on. 

But the stagnation of Bucklin did not last long. The people rea- 
lized that the loss of the division did not by any means threaten the 
standing of their town, and that its splendid location could not be 
taken away. 

About twelve years ago some new blood and energy were infused 
into the town, which began to arouse itself and take its place in the 
ranks of progress, its destiny from the first. The vitalizing influence 
was felt in every avenue of the town's life. 

The old wooden awnings in front of the store-buildings have been 
torn down and used for kindling wood. The frame store buildings 
have given place to modern brick structures, with large plate glass 
windows and attractive fronts. Miles of smooth granitoid sidewalk 
have superceded the rickety board affairs that gave service to the resi- 
dents a decade or so ago. Four new and picturesque additions to the 
town have been laid out, and the lots have found ready purchasers at 
good figures. More than 100 new houses have been built. 

Along with its commercial boom Bucklin has seen to it that its 
educational needs have not been neglected. A handsome new $10,000 
high school has been constructed and paid for. The Christian congre- 
gation has built a new $15,000 church edifice, and paid for it. 

Some three years ago a stock company was organized by G. L. 
Joyce to prospect for coal. The sum of $2,500 was raised, a charter 
secured and an operating shaft sunk. At a depth of 227 feet a bed of 
coal running from 32 to 36 inches was found. It proved to be of excel- 
lent quality, and is most satisfactory to consumers. The mine is now 
successfully operated by Cantwell & Woodruff, who bought out the 
entire interests of the original stockholders. This mine is located near 
the junction of the two railroads. The Hannibal & St. Joseph road 
has constructed a spur to the shaft, and cars of coal are daily sent out 
along the line. About twenty-five men are now working steadily, and 
receiving good wages. 

Bucklin has an electric light plant, with capacity sufficient to light 
a city of the size it expects to be in the next ten years. The plant has 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 231 

only been in operation one year, and it lias well passed the experi- 
mental stage and is listed among the many successful enterprises of 
the town. 

The raising of poultry for the market is a live industry all around 
Bucklin. In one year the firm of Lindley & Buster handled $100,000 
of poultry produced by farmers adjacent to Bucklin. 

According to the school record, Bucklin stands third in the list 
among the towns of Linn county in the number of pupils in its schools. 
Brookfield and Marceline are the only towns rivaling Bucklin in this 
respect. 

LiNNEUS 

Linneus's first settler was Colonel John Holland, who came from 
Virginia in the spring of 1834, and located his claim on the section 
where Linneus now stands. Colonel Holland constructed a two-room 
log cabin. In this pioneer edifice court was afterwards held, a school 
was taught and the business of the county transacted. The cabin stood 
near the center of the public square. For many years a heavy growth 
of timber surrounded the clearing about the Holland homestead. Two 
squirrels formed the principle dish for the Colonel's first breakfast 
after the completion of his cabin. The squirrels were shot by the 
Colonel the day before, while standing on his doorstep. 

Dinah was the name of a negro slave who came from Virginia 
with Colonel Holland to cook for the pioneers who built the cabin and 
cleared the timber about it. Colonel Holland also brought with him 
from Virginia thirty head of sheep, and these were the special charge 
of the black woman. Every day Dinah led her flock into the woods to 
let them browse upon the buds of hazel and elm. She was the shep- 
herdess of the flock and it was her duty to shoo away the savage wolves 
which were then numerous in the forest. At night Dinah penned the 
sheep in one room of Colonel Holland's cabin. A large dog, a match 
for any single wolf that might appear, was on guard outside. 

The cabin constructed, and Dinah left in charge. Colonel Holland 
went back to Virginia after his family and supplies. Dinah and the big 
dog were left alone. William and Jesse Bowyer would occasionally 
pass by the cabin and stop to see that all was well with Dinah and her 
charges. Aside from these visits the black woman had no one to speak 
with but her four-footed friends. 

At last the Hollands returned. That day was the happiest in 
Dinah's life. Her solitary vigil was over, and she had faithfully per- 
formed her trust. 



232 HISTOBY OF LINN COUNTY 

Upon Colonel Holland's death in July, 1855, Dinah was set free in 
accordance with the provisions of his will. She lived to be nearly 100 
years old, and witnessed the development of Linneus from a wilderness 
into a thriving city. 

Following is a list of the early settlers of Linneus, the record being 
made up to 1847: 

E. T. Denison, William Murrain, Charles F. Gibbs, A. D. Rawlins, 
Beverly B. Estes, Benjamin Russell, Matthews Dale, R. W. Foster, 
John Shepard, Irwin Ogan, Alexander Ogan, Samuel Isles, James Pen- 
dleton, John McClintock, Joseph Auberr}^ Bolding R. Ashbrook, 
Lyman Stearnes, Jackson Flournoy, James Carson, Susan Lane, 
Robert W. Holland, John Phillips, Marshall Harrison, Elijah Kemper, 
James C. Connelly, William Clarkson, Elkannah Bounds, Meridith 
Brown, Samuel D. Sandusky, Ennis Reid, Wesley Halliburton, H. H. 
Gibson, Elizabeth Flournoy, H. E. Hurlbut, David P. Woodruff, John 
T. Stockard, William Saunders, John B. Relph, William B. Woodruff, 
Benjamin Prewitt, Henry T. Grill, Edward Hoyle, W. B. Philbert, 
R. J. Menifee, Kenneth A. Newton, T. G. Easley, William Bowyer, 
John U. Parsons, John Walkup, John Barr, Beverly Neve, James 
Davis, Artemas V. Neece, Joseph Phelps, William R. Smith, Dr. James 
Bell, Martha A. Boisseau, Bennett Phillips, Hezekiah E. Sutton, 
Chaiirles Bodie, John J. Flood, Samuel Bell, George W. Smith, John 
Lane^ M. H. Williams, Jacob E. Quick, William Harrison, John Pullis, 
Henry T. Brown, Samuel Pullis, James Reid, John Bell, Henry Wilkin- 
son, William M. Long, Colonel William H. Moberly. 

Linneus was incorporated February 9, 1853, by order of the county 
court in response to the petition of its inhabitants. The order specified 
that John G. Flournoy, Edward Hoyle, Alexander Carroll, Marshall 
Harrison and William M. Long should be trustees. On March 18, 1880, 
Linneus was made a city of the fourth class, a large majority of its 
citizens voting in favor of the proposition. 

Quite a number of log cabins were built on the clearing made by 
Colonel Holland and his fellow pioneers. The first frame building was 
constructed in 1840. It was located north of the square. The lumber 
for it was worked up by an old-fashioned whipsaw. There were no 
regular saw mills in the country in that period. 

Gibbs, a tailor, was the enterprising man to put up the first im- 
proved house, one room of which he used for his shop. 

John T. Flournoy was the first male child born in Linneus. The 
event occurred May 5, 1837. Mr. and Mrs. Augustus W. Flournoy were 
the parents. Mildred Williams Holland, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. 



HISTORY OF -Lm^ COUNTY 333 

John Holland, was the first female child born in Linneus, the date of 
her birth being January 17, 1839. 

John G. Ball and Elizabeth Flournoy were the first persons mar- 
ried in the capital. The ceremony was performed by Squire Gibson in 
April, 1839. By some it was claimed that Mr. Ball was the first mer- 
chant in Linneus. Miss Flournoy was a school-teacher. The marriage 
occasioned a great deal of interest among the early settlers. 

The first death of a white man was that of Timothy Webber, which 
occurred in 1840 or 1841. Webber was a carpenter by trade and also 
kept a small grocery store. Colonel Holland had donated an acre of 
land to the town to be used as a cemetery. Webber remarked on learn- 
ing this : ' ' Well, it would be a good thing now if somebody would die 
so that we could make a mark in that graveyard and give it a good 
start." Soon after Webber himself died and gave the cemetery the 
start he suggested. 

Benjaman White is credited with the honor of having taught the 
first school in Linneus. That was in 1838. Allan Gillespie was the next 
teacher. John G. Flournoy taught the school in 1839 or 1840. As has 
been mentioned, the school room was in the Holland house. The first 
public school house was built in 1847 ; it stood close to where the rail- 
road track is now. It was a frame structure 18x22 feet and cost about 
$300. William Sanders, a native of Maine, taught the first term. There 
were about twent3''-five pupils. 

The first physician in the section about Linneus was Dr. Dryden, 
but before he came Judge James A. Clark, who made no pretentions to 
being a doctor, was considered quite a good hand to have around when 
people were sick. The judge kept a stock of quinine and calomel, which 
were in those days consideTed good for almost any pain and ache that a 
person could have. 

Chills and fever were the only maladies the busy pioneer had time 
to indulge in, and consequently his medicinal wants were few. Judge 
Clark was regarded as very expert in relieving physical distress. He 
never charged for his services, but responded to all calls day and night. 

Other physicians of the early day were Isaac Relph, who came 
from Ray county, and Isles, who was said to be a seceder from the 
Mormon church. Both of these men came in 1840. 

The Rev. A. F. Martin, a Missionary Baptist, conducted the first 
religious services in 1839. There was no church, and the meeting 
was held in a private house. The county court, in July, 1838, ordered 
that "Kemper & Givens be allowed to sell merchandise in Linn county 
for $10 to the state and $10 to the county revenue." Ball, Hezekiah 



234 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

Sutgon and "Webber were among the first mercbants and grocerymen. 
In those days a wagon load of merchandise was a stock of goods. The 
demands of the people were but few. They produced about all the food 
they needed. Quite a delicacy was "salt mackerel." With the woods 
and streams abounding with the finest game and fish that could be had, 
the pioneer often yearned for salted goods like herring and mackerel 
as a change from the ordinary bill of fare. 

David Prewitt, one of the leading merchants of Linneus, said that 
one barrel of sugar and one sack of flour were all that he could sell in 
a year's time. Mr. Prewitt afterwards conducted a large tobacco estab- 
lishment in Linneus and bought, prized and shipped tobacco for many 
years. His product was hauled overland to Brunswick, where it was 
transported by river to the market. Mr. Prewitt was engaged in this 
business from 1841 until 1852. During those years he was also treasurer 
of Linn county. 

A former history states that ' ' the entire county revenue would not 
exceed $350." 

The commodities were cheap. Pork sold for $1.50 a hundred and 
tobacco from $1.00 to $3.00 per hundred. In his large tobacco house 
Mr. Prewitt manufactured a variety of plug tobacco which commanded 
a large sale among the country merchants. It was also taken by the 
wagon-load to southern Iowa, where it was as popular as it was in 
Missouri. 

For a long while there was no church building in Linneus, and 
services were conducted in the old log court house. That was the forum 
for all sorts of business meetings. 

J. B| Colgan and George W. Smith were associated in the manufac- 
turing of tobacco at Linneus in 1847. 

Sometime before this Mr. Eooker owned a tobacco factory over on 
Y^ellow creek, which was managed by Charles Ayers, of Glasgow. David 
Prewitt is said to have been the pioneer tobacco manufacturer of the 
county. 

The first locomotive run over the Burlington & Southwestern 
tracks through Linneus was named "Colonel Northcott," in honor of 
the man who had been such a successful and earnest worker for the 
road. 

The first train over the Burlington & Southwestern road ran 
through Laclede to Linneus September 1, 1872. Not long afterwards 
the road was completed to Browning and was operated to that point. 

Trains began running regularly from Burlington to Laclede Sep- 
tember 29, 1876. In the fall of 1873, before the road had been completed 



HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 235 

iiito Burlington, business from Laclede to Browning became light and 
the road was in such bad condition that train service was suspended 
for several weeks. A good deal of dissatisfaction was expressed by the 
citizens and shippers along the line, and some even went so far as to 
suggest that if the managers were not going to operate the road the 
track had better be torn up and taken out of the way. 

There was a big fire in Linneus in January, 1879. At about 10 :30 
'clock on the night of the 23d, fire broke out in the store room occupied 
by S. Bradenburger & Co., on the west side of the public square. It 
was supposed that the fire originated in a defective flue. The Branden- 
burger building was burned ; loss $17,000 ; insurance, $10,000. 

The two-story brick building, the property of Presley Pound, was 
also destroyed. The lower room of this building was occupied by Mor- 
ris as a hardware store. The greater portion of the stock was saved. 
The upper section was used as a lodge room and also embraced Dr. 
Allen's dental office and the office of B. J. Northcott, attorney. The 
flames spread to the implement warehouse and lumber yard owned by 
J. F. Lash, causing a damage estimated at $1,100. A frame building 
belonging to H. C. Prewitt, which was in the rear of Pound's house, was 
also burned. 

The printing material of the Bulletin office and the stocks of goods 
belonging to P. H. Perkins, C. A. Holten, J. H. Bradley, M. Goldman 
and Clark & Bradley were moved out into the street for safety, as it 
appeared at one time that the entire block would be swept away by the 
flames, and it was only by the greatest efforts that some of the build- 
ings were saved. 

In 1880 a number of enterprising citizens of Linneus organized a 
stock company and put up a two-story brick hotel, which cost about 
$8,000. For a long time this was one of the feature buildings of the 
town. It was of attractive construction, commodious and comfortable 
and enjoyed a large business. For over 30 years it stood as the leading 
hotel of the town. Its first tenant was M. P. Cloudas, of Trenton. He 
was followed by J. L. Palmer, of Lancaster, Missouri, and various other 
managers from time to time. 

There was an election held in Linneus May 24, 1881, to vote on the 
question of the organization and incorporation of the town as a city of 
the fourth class, under the law of 1877. The proposition was adopted 
by a large majority. At the same time it was voted to refund the city 
debt, which was then $9,000, in bonds paying six per cent interest and 
running from five to twenty years. 



236 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

LINNEUS SINCE 1882— BY D. B. ORMISTON. 

By an order of the Circuit Court, at the August term, 1839, Linneus 
was established as a county seat of Linn county, which honor it bears 
with pride alike to itself and the county. The capital's growth was at 
no period rapid or spasmodic, but rather slow and substantial. The 
first court house was erected under an order of the county court 
entered of record at the February term, 1841. This building did not 
long meet the requirements of the developing conditions and on May 
14, 1846, the county court apporpriated $4,000 for the erection of 
another building, which was completed and accepted by the court on 
October 16, 1848. The old building which stood as a temple of justice 
at the close of the Civil War, and which many of our citizens yet well 
remember, was at various times remodeled and repaired. In 1885, 
under the court presided over by Judge Silas Hale, it was rebuilt and 
remains until this day. Various attempts have been made to induce 
the tax-payers to build a court house that would reflect credit upon 
this splendid county, but all efforts failed until the first day of August, 
1911, a proposition to build a $60,000 building, to be paid for by a direct 
levy covering three years, was submitted and carried by a substantial 
majority. The work of construction will begin next spring, 1913. 

Linneus is located on high, commanding ground, one of the highest 
tracts between the Mississippi and the Missouri rivers; has excellent 
natural drainage and abundance of the best water at from ten to forty 
feet. Like many of the old towns and cities of Missouri, Linneus 's 
business district surrounds a central public square, in which the court 
house now stands, and in which the new structure will be erected. Feb- 
ruary 9, 1853, was the date of incorporation, and March 18, 1880, Lin- 
neus became a city of the fourth class ; was incorporated under the law 
of 1877, June 17, 1881. 

The purjDose of this article is to present in a condensed form some 
of the facts connected with the history of this city, beginning with 1882, 
and we shall confine the sketch to the material, educational, religious 
and social development. Linneus has always been noted for its hos- 
pitality, financial strength, deep-seated love for education and music, 
broad patriotism and great respect for law and order. Its people are 
cultured, generous and courteous; at all times seeking the ennobling 
qualities of heart and mind rather than the transitory. Early in the 
life of Linneus attention was given to the religious growth of the peo- 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 237 

pie, and the requirements of the church received earnest consideration. 
The Baptist Church was organized in 1839, and for many years occu- 
pied the building which is now the home of the Bulletin. In 1893-4 a 
neat frame building was erected in the eastern part of the cit}^, which 
has all the modern needs of the large and growing membership. The 
last pastor was the Eeverend R. L. Wood, who in April accepted a call 
from the Baptist Church at Adrian, Missouri. The pulpit here at this 
writing, has not been supplied but will be in the near future. 

The Methodist Episcopal Church, South, was organized in October, 
1844, and is strong in membership and wields a potent influence for 
good. This congregation erected a beautiful edifice on the site of the 
old structure in 1883, and under the pastorate of the Eeverend F. A. 
Henry the organization is rated among the influential churches of the 
county. The Christian Church was organized in 1853. In 1889 the 
members razed their old church and erected a neat, substantial, roomy 
edifice on the site of the former building. The membership is large and 
embraces many of the well-to-do farmers residing near the city. 

The Methodist Episcopal Church was organized many years 
ago, and for a long time had a struggle for existence. Its house of 
worship was located at the northeast corner of the public square. It 
was not until 1909 that this congregation felt numerically and financially 
able to erect a new edifice. The task was undertaken and resulted in 
the establishment of a magnificent structure on the site of the old 
church. It is regarded as being one of the best equipped churches in 
this part of the state. Under the pastorate of Reverend Lloyd H. 
Lanning, who was born in Brookfield and educated in that city and at 
Missouri Wesleyan College, Cameron, Missouri, it is enjoying a sub- 
stantial growth. 

The Second Baptist Church (colored) was organized, and under 
the pastorate' of the Reverend Hardin Morgan has accomplished much 
for its people both religiously and educationally. The Reverend Mor- 
gan has served this church more than thirty years. 

The educational history of this city is treated exhaustively else- 
where in this work, and in passing will only state that the period of 
the greatest development and efficiency has been that under the superin- 
tendency of Professor E. J. Powell, a native of Linn county, who has 
been at the head of our educational system for the past five years. 

The newspapers of this city have contributed largely to its growth, 
progress and development, always standing for enterprising policies 
and men. (See Newspapers of the County.) 



238 HISTORY OF hm^ COUNTY 

In 1882 Liiineus had but one bank, that of Combs & Wilkerson, 
which was located in the west end of the building south of the Meyer 
& Locke Mercantile Company. In 1889 this concern was reorganized, 
since which time it has been operating imder the name of the Farmers' 
& Merchants' Bank, the pioneer bank of Linneus. 

The Moore & MuUins Bank was organized and opened its doors for 
business in January, 1896. It is owned by Major A. W. Mullins and 
W. L. Moore. With a capital of $20,000 and a surplus of $30,000, it 
has been wonderfully successful from its beginning. Colonel F. W. 
Powers is cashier and Ben H. Mullins, assistant cashier. The bank has 
growm in favor and ranks as one of the foremost and best managed 
financial institutions in this part of the state. It is located in the Opera 
House block. 

In 1905 the Citizens' Bank was established. It is located at the 
southwest corner of the square, and has elegant equipment. It has a 
cash capital of $30,000 with a surplus of $3,500, and enjoys a growing 
patronage. Judge A. B. Bond is president, W. B. Thorn, cashier, and 
M. E. Foshei^, assistant cashier. No town in the state has better 
banking institutions that Linneus. 

The Commercial Hotel is one of the old landmarks of the city, 
and while old age should command reverence, it is with joy and gladness 
that on the 10th day of June, in this year of our Lord, 1912, a force of 
workmen will begin the task of tearing dow^n this popular but outgrown 
hostelry, that it may give place to a far larger and better one. Before 
the snow flies one of the best hotel buildings in the state will adorn the 
corner on which the Commercial has so long stood. The money has 
been subscribed and the work of building will be pushed with all possible 
speed. 

In 1900 the Superior Haystacker Manufacturing Company was 
organized and established. It is located just south of the Burlington 
railway station, where it covers a vast area of ground. Various kinds 
of harvesting implements are manufactured. These find ready sale in 
all of the agricultural regions of the great West. This plant employs a 
large number of men the year round. It has a working capital of 
$35,000. 0. P. Vroom is president and M. V. Fetty, secretary-treasurer. 

South of the Superior Haystacker Manufacturing Company's plant 
is located the flouring mill owned and operated by W. E. Forman. Dur- 
ing the period alloted to this article, the mill has been destroyed by fire 
twice. The present proprietor has succeeded in a marked degree in 
drawing patronage from all sections of the county, and his success is 



HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 239 

due to his indomitable Avill and determination to give every man a 
'^ square deal." 

A United States postoffice was established in Linneus in 1840. Dr. 
J. C. Cooper was the first postmaster. He was succeeded by the follow- 
ing : J. U. Parsons, Marshall Harrison, E. H. Richardson, Robert Fer- 
guson, Harvey Wanck, Charles A. Perkins, D. B. Ormiston, J. P. Brad- 
ley and D. B. Ormiston, the present incumbent, who was re-appointed. 
The office is now located in the News building. Five rural carriers are 
now connected with the office and these faithful servants of the people 
deliver mail over one-sixth of the entire county. 

The present city government is progressive in all matters concern- 
ing the growth and welfare of the municipality. Mayor J. G. Collins 
is serving his third term. The council is composed of M. E. Fosher, 
T. S. Stephenson, B. H. MuUins and J. N. Carter, with H. E. Symons, 
city clerk; C. E. Swinney, collector; T. M. Davis, marshal; and W. B. 
Craig, treasurer. 

The people of Linneus have adopted municipal ownership to the 
extent of owning a magnificent opera house, city park and an electric 
light plant. These properties are conducted at a minimum cost for the 
pleasure and convenience of the people. About six years ago the cement 
era was inaugurated, since which time practically all of the wooden 
walks have given place to concrete, and long lines of cement walks 
thread the city in every direction. 

The civic and fraternal societies are well represented. Masonic. 
Odd Fellows, Knights of Pythias, M. W. of A., Yeoman and Royal 
Neighbors all have strong lodges. Many literary clubs have been 
formed among the ladies, embracing the Laurel Club, P. E. 0., and 
M. I. C. 

Wonderful changes have taken place during the thirty years cov- 
ered by this article. Truly this is a new Linneus. Every church has 
been rebuilt, every bank occupies a new home; there is a new school 
building, a new park, opera house, electric light plant, manufacturing 
industries, flouring mill, new county infirmary, new jail, — in fact, prac- 
tically everything has been made new. Linneus now enters upon its era 
of greatest growth and development. The erection of a new hotel this 
year and the new court house next year will invite capital and people, 
and the years ahead are bright with promise of a splendid growth. The 
impediments of the past no longer confront the capital city, and with 
warm hearts and glad hands our citizenship extends greetings and bids 
you join in our glorious future. 



240 HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 

Beowning 
(By Senator E. B. Fields) 

Browning is located on the line between Linn and Sullivan counties, 
about one-fourth of the town being in the latter county. 

According to the census of 1910 there was a population of 629, 
but at this writing it is considerably larger than that. The town was 
platted in 1872. Building operations on an extensive scale immediately 
began. John Gable, Sr., a native of Pennsylvania, is credited with hav- 
ing erected the first dwelling. Gable's building was used for many 
years as a hotel. It was wrecked a few years since in order to make 
space for a modern and commodious residence, which is now owned 
and occupied by H. H. Dunkin. 

For a long while the site on which Browning is located was used 
as a voting precinct. That was when Sullivan county belonged to the 
territory of Linn. The citizens assembled at the residence of Dr. W. 
E. Robinson, an old settler. 

Dr. Robinson owned a large part of the land on which the city now 
stands. His early day residence stood about where W. P. Carter's 
barn is now, on a hill in the west part of the city. 

This old log house remained until 1911, when it was removed. 

W. J. Kennedy, now living at La Plata, Missouri, is said to have 
been the first merchant of Browning. He was a member of the first 
board of trustees. The other members were W. J. McCrary, H. C. 
Hill, W. J. Biswell and S. A. Malony. 

Mr. Kennedy was also depot agent, postmaster and hotel keeper 
during the early life of the town. 

As is the case with most new municipalities, there was considerable 
discussion as to the most effective name. Some suggested that it be 
called Linnivan, an ingenious method of combining the syllables of 
the two counties, but it was finally decided to honor the wife of an 
official of the railroad, a Mrs. Browning. 

Some of the early merchants of Browning are given as follows: 

Y. J. Biswell, who came from old Scottsville; Hill & Shipman 
of the same place, and E. H. Scrock and F. E. Stone, who each conducted 
a drug store, and Boiling & Alexander who run a lumber yard and 
implement house. 

The first newspaper published in Browning was the Monitor. It 
was a neatly printed and well-edited sheet. The next paper was the 
Browning Reporter, of which A. Robinson was editor and proprietor. 
The town has always possessed a live, well patronized newspaper. 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 241 

The present paper is the Browning Leader-Record, an Independent 
paper, edited and published by Joseph Nickell. 

The first male child born in Browning was the son of Mr. and 
Mrs. William Armstrong. That was in the spring of 1873. The little 
fellow lived but a short while and his was the first death that occurred 
in the new town. 

Kebeoca Biswell, the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. D. W. Biswell, was 
the first female child born in Browning. Her birth occurred October 
13, 1875. 

Dr. William Witter came from Milan shortly after Browning was 
laid out. To him belongs the distinction of being the first physician, 
but he remained in the town only a short while. 

In February, 1873, a few months after the town was surveyed, 
Browning had one general store, one blacksmith shop, a postoffice and 
one saloon. George C. Williams of Linneus was the first postmaster. 
He didn't remove to Browning and John Edwards attended to the 
duties of the postoffice as his deputy. 

W. T. Wogan taught the first school in Browning in 1874. 

The first marriage in the town occurred in 1873. The contracting 
parties were N. 0. Beacham and Miss Matilda Smith. 

Religious services were held in a building occupied by J. T. 
Fleming and Son as a store. The Eev. J. H. Cox, who afterwards 
became a noted minister in Missouri, preached to the little congrega- 
tion of Methodists that assembled in the store. 

Browning has always been a live, progressive and up-to-date city. 
It has splendid society, good schools and excellent churches. Like 
other places of importance, Browning has had its troubles. The one 
which gave to the place its greatest notoriety was that developing out 
of the murder of Gus Meeks and his family. This was known as the 
Taylor case. 

On May 10, 1894, it was discovered that Gus Meeks, his wife and 
all his children except a little girl named Nellie had been murdered 
and hidden away in an old straw-stack on a farm belonging to George 
E. Taylor, southwest of Browning about four miles. 

Nellie lived and gave the alarm. Suspicion was immediately 
directed towards W. P. and George E. Taylor, who fled the country 
and were pursued and finally captured in Arkansas. They were 
brought back to Missouri, tried in Carroll county and convicted of 
murder in the first degree. 

Both were sentenced to death. Before the day of the execution 



243 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

George Taylor escaped from jail, and if living is now a wanderer in 
parts unknown. 

W. P. Taylor was executed in accordance with the stern mandate 
of the law. Nellie Meeks grew into beautiful young womanhood, was 
married, enjoyed a few short months of wedded life and now sleeps in 
a graveyard in Sullivan county. 

Columns and columns were written in the newspapers about the 
tragedy, but the above comprises all the essential historical details. 

Browning has four church buildings and as many strong church 
organizations. It is a God-fearing and a God-loving community and 
as law-abiding as any in the state. It has a first-class high school, 
with a three-year course in high school work and eight grades below 
the high school. Six teachers are employed and they keep the standard 
as high as that of any three years' school anywhere. 

Before this history is printed Browning will be enjoying the facili- 
ties afforded by a modern acetylene lighting system, the installation 
being in progress at this writing. 

David B. Stone was the first settler on the site of Browning. 
Stone's father lived on land now within the corporate limits of the 
city. He operated a mill along about the time of the Civil War. 

B. D. Boiling, president of the Browning Savings Bank, is the 
oldest inhabitant, having resided there continuously. 

Three good banking institutions, well officered and doing a thriving 
and conservative business are operated in Browning. All carry large 
deposits and their prosperity is a reflection of the general prosperity 
of the productive community tributary to the town. 

Browning is not a boom town in the sense as the word has been 
employed in the west, but belongs to that class of cities the develop- 
ment of which is the result of steady, solid and substantial growth. 

"Each morn it greets the rising sun supremely confident that 
the day will bring forth its share of business and of pleasure." 

Laclede 
(By Oscar F. Libby) 
This important city of Linn county is located on a picturesque 
prairie ridge. Turkey Creek is a mile east and Locust Creek four 
miles west. A productive farming country surrounds the place and 
brings to it an extensive trade from prosperous agriculturists. Hand- 
some modern farmhouses, large barns, extensive orchards and fields 
give color to the landscape, and mark a region of enterprise and 
prosperity. 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 243 

The early history of Laclede and the attractive section of country 
surrounding it, as related to the writer by the late Joseph G. Worlow, 
is as follows: 

In 1848 Joshua Gentry and J. T. K. Hayward, two of the promoters 
of the Hannibal & St. Joe Railroad, in one of their frequent trips of 
inspection along the line, stopped at the home of Peter Worlow, who 
lived a short distance north of where Laclede was afterwards located. 
At that time the matter of building the railroad was a live subject 
all along the route. As a matter of course it was discussed during 
the visit of the two promoters at Mr. Worlow 's residence. They told 
what a railroad would mean in the way of developing the country, 
furnishing a market for farm products and a rapid means of transit to 
the cities. Inspired by what they heard, Mr. Worlow 's two sons, Jacob 
L. and Joseph G., decided to enter the northwest quarter of Section 
5, Township 57, Range 20, for the purpose of locating a townsite. The 
two young Worlow men went to Milan, where the land office was, and 
filed in the name of Jacob L. Worlow alone, as Joseph was not then 
twenty-one. 

It was understood by the brothers, however, that they were to 
share equally in the venture. 

The Worlows platted the town and carried out the enterprise as 
they had planned. That was in 1853. Henry W. Cross, C. V. Eastman 
and J. M. Cook assisted in the undertaking. Mr, Cross is credited 
with having suggested the name, Laclede, in honor of the old French 
pioneer who founded the great city of St. Louis. The first residences 
were erected by Mr. Worley, Aaron Quick and J. M. Clark. 
Jacob E. Quick put up the first store building. 
The postoffice was established in 1855. Aaron Quick was appointed 
postmaster. 

Joseph Hamburger started and operated the first boarding-house. 
The second store building was put up and run by John G. L. 
Hedrick. Squire M. G. Roush built the third store in Laclede. 

In 1857 Jacob E. Quick built the first schoolhouse. E. G. Clough 
did the carpenter work. The building was sixteen feet square and 
cost the modest sum of $75. 

Miss Martha Quick, daughter of the builder, Jacob E. Quick, was 
the first school-teacher. 

The first public school building was erected on the site of the 
present schoolhouse in 1857. It was used until 1873, when it was 
moved and a modern brick building erected in its stead. This last 
schoolhouse contained four large and comfortable rooms and was in 



244 HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 

service imtil 1901, when it gave place to the present handsome school 
building and is yet serving the students of Laclede. 

Charlotte F., daughter of Mr. and Mrs. M. G. Roush, was born 
July 27, 1857, and had the disinction of being the first female child 
born in the town. 

Frank, son of Mr. and Mrs. James Dick, was just a month later 
in coming to town. He was the first male child born in Laclede. 

The first religious services were held at a boarding-house shanty, 
not far from the railroad track. They were conducted by the Rev. 
Father Hogan, now a bishop and living in Kansas City. 

The following religious denominations are represented in the 
churches of Laclede: Methodist Episcopal, Christian and Baptist. 
Tliere is also a negro Baptist church. 

Laclede has two good banks, ten business houses, two hotels, three 
restaurants, two millinery stores, two blacksmith, wagon and repair 
shops, one livery stable, a lumber yard, two grain dealers, one ax- 
handle factory, a plant for the manufacture of cement blocks, a good 
mill, boarding-house, a good weekly newspaper, two lawyers, three 
physicians, three resident ministers, two meat markets and a 
barber shop. 

Being located at the junction of the Hannibal & St. Joseph and 
the Chicago, Burlington and Kansas City railroads, both properties 
of the Burlington system, Laclede enjoys excellent shipping facilities. 
Its people are progressive and hospitable. They encourage every 
legitimate plan for trade expansion. The country abounds in rioh 
material of all kinds. There are some excellent clays suitable for brick 
and tile making. Over to the west is the fertile Locust Creek Valley, 
which will soon have the improvement of an extensive drainage system. 
The completion of this enterprise will nearly double the value of land 
in the vicinity. 

A good electric lighting system has been installed, the streets are 
wide and well-kept and there is a beautiful park in the heart of the 
city. The location on the two lines of railroad, the character of the 
country and the public-spiritedness of the citizens are three elements 
that are bound to make Laclede still grow and prosper as the years 
roll by, 

PURDIN 

Half way between Linneus and Browning, on a branch of the 
Burlington Railroad, is situated the beautiful little city of Purdin. The 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 246 

town derives its name from its founder, Mr. Purdin, who owned the 
land and recorded the first town plat of the place. 

In 1881 the railroad company erected a small depot for the com 
venience of its patrons in that section, and the follomng year Messrs. 
A. S. Johnson and H. H. Streed erected some small cattle pens and 
began the shipment of stock from that point. In the fall of that year 
a public road was built connecting with the main traveled road between 
Linneus and Milan, allowing the people in that section of the county 
free access to the depot and the privilege of flagging trains for their 
convenience at that point. 

In February, 1883, Messrs. W. G. Beckett and W. 0. Mathews 
erected the first store building, and in the same year W. H. Rudy built 
a small saw-mill, and a little later enlarged the plant by adding a grist- 
mill to it. In the same year Mr. A. L. Cooper opened a blacksmith 
shop and the town at once began to grow. G. T. Riley opened the first 
hotel in 1887, and in 1894 the Bank of Purdin was organized and 
opened for business. 

Since that time Purdin has made rapid strides, until today it is 
considered one of the attractive and fast-growing towns of the county. 
There are no less than twenty business places of all kinds and descrip- 
tions, together with two prosperous banks, a large number of fine resi- 
dences, \^dth modern churches and schools in proportion to the 
population. 

The first merchant of the town, W. G. Beckett, is still in business, 
and from his small beginning in 1883 has grown the Purdin Mercantile 
Company, which is today one of the largest retail establishments in 
the county. Purdin also can boast of a weeklj^ newspaper, which enjoys 
a good circulation throughout the surrounding country; its people are 
energetic and wide-awake, ready to take advantage of every oppor- 
tunity offered them to increase their business and build up their town 
along all lines. 

Scattered throughout the county are a number of small places 
which are patronized by the farmers of the surrounding country, and 
which are of great convenience to the people in general. Among them 
can be mentioned the following: St. Catharine, which is one of the 
oldest towns in the county, having been laid out on April 28, 1856. 
The ground upon which it was located belonged to William and Cath- 
arine Elliott together with Caleb and Mary Farmer. The town was 
named Catharine after Mrs. Catharine Elliott. Afterwards the word 
''saint" or "St.." as it was written, was added to it. 

For many years St. Catharine was one of the leading towns of the 



246 HISTOEY OF LINX COUNTY 

county, and not until after Brookfield had been selected as the division 
point on the Hannibal and St. Joseph Railroad did it lose its prestige. 

Today but little remains to remind one of her past greatness. 
There are two general stores, a good school, churches and a railroad 
station, but the people surrounding it are drawn to Brookfield and 
other points on account of superior advantages offered them there. 

Another important village in the county is New Boston, situated 
on section one, in Baker township. The founders of New Boston were 
A. Borron and R. A. C. Wright. It has never been platted or incor- 
porated, but notwithstanding these facts it has made considerable 
progress and is a great source of convenience to a wide scope of country 
surrounding it. New Boston has had a postofifice since 1872, and today 
it has a number of general stores, a thriving bank, together with 
schools, churches and lodges in proportion to her population. 

Other small places or trading points are located in other parts 
of the county, among which can be mentioned Shelby, Eversonville, 
Haysville, Fountain Grove, Garner, Enterprise and others. These are 
principally country stores operated solely for the convenience of 
persons residing in their immediate neighborhood. 

Mbadville 

Meadville like most other towns on the line of the Hannibal and 
St. Joseph Railroad, dates its real existence on the completion of that 
road through Linn county. To be sure the site of Meadville was a year 
or two older. The first man to erect a business building was John 
Botts, who ventured to build a small store on the present site of Mead- 
ville in 1858. A short time thereafter David Lancaster built a little 
blacksmith shop. These two buildings comprised the settlement which 
was named "New Baltimore." 

The first stock of goods brought to the place was hauled from 
Brunswick with an ox team by William Botts, who is still a resident of 
the place. 

Time rolled on; and some time during the year 1858 or 1859 the 
Hannibal and St. Joseph Railroad was completed through this place. 
Mr, Botts had quite a time to induce them to build a depot at that 
point, as they were talking of building it two miles west of "New 
Baltimore;" but through the efforts of Mr. Botts they were induced 
to erect a building on the spot where it now stands. 

On the first day of February, 1860, John Duff, John M. Forbes, 
John Brooks, John Botts, Josiah Hunt and John L. Lathrop appeared 



HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 247 

before Peter B. Groat, a notary public at Hannibal, Missouri, with 
acknowledgement that they had laid out the town of Bottsville on Sec- 
tion 6, Township 57, Range 21, west, in the County of Linn and state 
of Missouri, and that a correct plat of the place was attached thereto. 

In February of the same year John Botts made the same acknowl- 
edgement in Linn county, and it was then duly recorded by Jeremiah 
Phillips, county recorder at that time. Thus the new town of ''New 
Baltimore" went into oblivion and Bottsville became a reality. 

During the Civil War matters came to a standstill and remained 
so until 1867, when they took a turn for the better. At this time Botts- 
ville 's business interests were small. Thomas D. Evans carried a 
small stock of general merchandise and also officiated as postmaster j 
L. W. James (long since deceased) ran a drug store, and Daniel 
Thurston and T. F. Spencer each carried a small stock of groceries, 
while L. N. Goodale discharged the duties of station agent. 

It was about that time that John Botts, who had served as the 
first postmaster, disposed of his holdings and returned to Howard 
county. 

In 1867 the question of changing the town's name from Bottsville 
to Meadville was agitated, and a petition was taken before the county 
court asking that the above change be made. This was in April, 1869. 
Some, however, opposed the change, and also went before the county 
court at the May term with a similar petition, asking that the name 
of Bottsville be restored. This petition was granted by the court and 
the name changed from Meadville to Bottsville, and continued in that 
way until October, 1869, when it was finally changed to Meadville, 
and will probably remain so for all future time. The name Meadville 
was given in honor of Charles Mead, at that time superintendent of 
the Hannibal and St. Joseph Eailroad. 

The first schoolhouse erected was in 1859 ; it was a frame building, 
18x26, and cost about $200. It did service until 1872, when a fine 
brick building was substituted for it. This in time gave way to others 
until today the town can boast of one of the best and most modern 
equipped schools in the county. 

The first birth recorded is that of Ada Grace, the daughter of 
James A. and Tabitha W. Grace, her birth having occurred in 1863. 

The first wedding took place in August, 1866. E. D. Harvey per- 
formed the ceremony, and the contracting parties were Joel F. Spencer 
and Elizabeth James. 

The first death in Meadville was that of Mrs. Frank Harvey, who 
died in the winter of 1866. 



248 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

The first resident physician was Dr. Stephen Beach. He came in 
1866, purchased a farm just south of town, upon which he died in 1875. 

The first religious services were held in the year 1859; the Rev. 
Father Hogan officiating. 

The first resident minister was the Rev. L. W. James of the 
Christian church, who came in the spring of 1865. 

The first principal of graded school was Mr. L. M. Smith. 

Meadville claims the distinction of having been first to start what 
was known as agricultural picnics. They were a gathering of the 
farmers, their wives, sons and daughters and were joined by the town 
people en masse. It was a day looked for with interest and when it 
arrived was one of unalloyed pleasure. 

Out of these picnics has grown what is known far and wide as the 
Meadville chautauqua assembly, which was started in 1905, and has 
grown each year in popularity with the people throughout the county 
until it today undoubtedly is the most popular chautauqua assembly 
in northeast Missouri. The grounds are beautifully located just north 
of the city and a thousand or more people camp each year on these 
grounds, besides other thousands who come day after day in carriages, 
automobiles or by trains to enjoy the excellent programme. 

In the way of entertainment the managers of the chautauqua 
assembly secure each year the services of some of the best known 
speakers in the country that are engaged in chautauqua work. Many 
of the most noted men of the day have spoken from their platform, 
and the people look forward each year with pleasure and profit to the 
week to be spent at the Meadville chautauqua. 

Meadville was duly incorporated as a city of the fourth class on 
January 4, 1881, and the following officers were appointed by the 
court: George W. Golden, mayor; A. B. Black, J. C. Waters, John 
McNicholas and D. M. Sevey, aldermen, with John Crafton as marshal. 

Meadville is in the heart of a fertile and thickly populated region. 
The railroad carries daily heavy consignments of products of the farm, 
the dairy and poultry yard to the markets. The town is well supplied 
with churches, has a splendid school and all facilities and conveniences 
of modern life; is well located, healthful and attractive. Best of all, 
it is inhabited by a kind-hearted generous people, with the welcoming 
hand always outstretched to the visitor. 



CHAPTEE XVII 

Locust Creek Drainage System — Enterprise to Reclaim 25,000 Acres — 
Estimated Rise in Land Values — An Interesting Landmark — The 
Woodland Mills — Indian Mounds — Descendant of a Noted Warrior 
— Bop Lost in the Wilderness — Sheltered by a Deer — A Mother's 
Joy — The Trail of the 49ers — The Hannibal and St. Joseph Cross- 
State Highway — Automobile Men and Farmers Working for an 
Important Improvement — List of Towns on Route — Statement by 
State Highway Engineer — Importance of Good Roads. 

The farmers and landowners along Locust Creek bottoms are 
planning an extensive drainage system which will save and render 
productive 25,000 fertile acres in the valley. As contemplated the 
drainage work will begin above Linneus and extend some twelve or 
thirteen miles down the valley to Grand River. Several meetings have 
been held and at the publication of this history the organization is 
well under way. Mr. Shaffer, a government engineer from Spring- 
field, Missouri; J. H. Nolen of Jefferson City and John B. Logan of 
the Missouri State Waterways Company, have visited the valley and 
made an inspection of the situation. They have unhesitatingly ex- 
pressed the opinion that the land could all be reclaimed by a system 
of ditches and dikes. Mr. Nolen said that in his opinion the best method 
would be to construct one straight ditch through the valley. 

Owing to the fact that the land was subject to periodical over- 
flows during crop growing seasons it has only commanded from $30 
to $60 per acre. Mr. Shaffer, who has had a great deal of experience 
in drainage projects, and is a good judge of land values, said that if 
well drained and ditched the region bordering the creek would immedi- 
ately rise in value from $150 to $200 per acre. 

The experience of the adjoining county of Macon has proved that 
drainage ditches will effectively save large bodies of land which have 
hitherto been subjected to devastating overflows. Along the Chariton 
Valley they have constructed two ditches, each about thirty feet in 
width, and within recent years these waterways have been subjected 
to severe tests by heavy floods coming down from the north. The 

249 



250 HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 

farmers who organized to construct the system are thoroughly satisfied 
with its efficiency. With the exception of one or two low places the 
water has been promptly drained and carried on down to the Missouri 
river. Laterals are being made from the low places to the canals and 
soon the entire district under organization will be as safe from damage 
by overflow as any land in that county. 

The enterprising farmers who are moving in the ditch matter in 
Linn county are confident that the same result will be reached here. 
As high as ninety bushels of corn to the acre and forty bushels of 
wheat have been produced in the Locust Creek Valley. With a good 
system of ditching and diking that record could be made almost every 
year, and some are so sanguine that they think it could be exceeded. 

The first meeting to consider the project of draining the valley 
was held at Meadville in July, 1911. Another meeting was held at 
Linneus in February, 1912. An organization was formed at that time 
and F. L. Fitch was elected president; Aleck Brinkley, secretary and 
Mr. Fetty treasurer. A committee was appointed to work up interest 
in the project. A petition for the organizing of the drainage district 
association will be filed with the circuit court. The legal formality 
complied with, the contracts will be let and the work will be industri- 
ously pushed. No enterprise ever inaugurated in Linn county promises 
greater results for the money invested. It will be noted in the United 
States Census Bulletin that Linn county land is rated higher than in 
most other counties of northern Missouri. This in spite of the fact 
that no great work has been yet done in the Locust Creek Valley, the 
most fertile land in the county. The strengthening influence to values 
in the valley by the drainage system will extend to all the lands in 
the county, and add greatly to the total wealth of property. 

One of the interesting landmarks of Locust Creek Valley is the 
old water-mill, about four miles west of Laclede, on the estate of J. 
L. Wood. The site is rugged and picturesque. In the early days of 
the state there was an Indian village there and a rock ford to afford 
easy crossing. Immense boulders crop out from the bluffs, and many 
have deeply imbedded in them salt-water shells. It is supposed that 
the country hereabouts was once a part of the sea, and that explains 
the shells. The mill is close to a public highway, which crosses the 
stream on a strong steel bridge. The dam and the mill were built by 
Daniel Grant in 1878. The plant was known as the Woodland mill. 
It was operated by water-power. The Woodland mills did grinding 
for a large territory, and at certain seasons of the year run night 
and day. 



HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 251 

Mr. Wood purchased the property from Daniel Detrich in 1891. 
It had changed hands a number of times between Grant and Detrich. 
Plummer Ong was employed as head miller. Mr. Wood put in steam to 
run the machinery when the water was low and also two powerful tur- 
bines of the James Leffel type, so that the mill could be operated by 
water power when the creek was on the rising stage. These turbines 
are of the same type as those used at Niagara Falls. 

When the mill was running, Mr. Wood drew customers from as 
far north as Milan and as far south as Brunswick. The plant produced 
regular roller mill flour and did general custom work. The price for 
grinding by water power was one-eighth and by steam power one-sixth. 
The capacity of the mill is from forty to fifty barrels of flour per day. 

The mill house is a large three story structure, with a capacity 
for storing an immense amount of grain. Being situated conveniently 
on a main highway, it is in an advantageous position to command a 
large trade today if it were put in commission again. 

On Mr. Wood's large estate, not far from his mill, are several 
Indian burying grounds. These are in the form of mounds. Parties 
have dug into them recently, and found many interesting pieces of 
pottery, arrows, tomahawks and the bones of tribesmen. A few years 
ago a young woman from Oklahoma visited the farm for the purpose, 
she stated, of finding where one of her ancestors was buried. Although 
she talked English fluently, and dressed in good style she said there was 
Indian blood in her veins and that she had a curiosity to see the burial 
spot of her remote kinsman. She went to one of the mounds on Mr. 
Wood's place and looked at it long and interestedly, and gave it as 
her opinion that that was the one in which the remains of the warrior 
chieftain was sleeping. She made no attempt to dig into the mound. 

There is a pathetic little story or legend about a small boy who 
became lost and passed the night by himself in the wilderness, on a 
mound northwest of the Woodland mill, about a mile away. The inci- 
dent occurred in the pioneer days, along in the early 50s. The lad 
was about four years old. He started out alone one morning to over- 
take his father, who had gone to Linneus. The little fellow walked 
and walked until he was completely tired out. Night came on and he 
lay down to rest on a mound and went to sleep. Of course the members 
of his family were very much distressed over his absence and spent 
the night hunting for him. Next morning he was found curled up by 
an old doe and her faun. The boy said that he had heard his mother 
calling during the night and that he had answered her, but that she 
didn't come to him; he didn't know why it was. It was supposed that 



352 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

he had gone to sleep and the animals had chosen the same spot for 
retirement. During the night he heard the doe bleating and imagined 
it was the voice of his mother. The mother was overcome with joy 
at finding her little son alive. In those days for a child to get out of 
sight of the old log cabin meant that it was likely to be in great danger 
from the animals that were always prowling the woods. 

The road running by the Woodland mills used to be known as the 
Brunswick and Chillicothe trail. It was used largely by the '49ers in 
their daily trek to the far West. The roads are unexceptionally good, 
and can be kept in good order almost the year round with a little 
dragging. The soil is a black loam, and the roads do not wash badly 
as they do in a country of clay hills. By the time this history is in 
press Linn county will have a standard dirt highway from the eastern 
to the western border. This highway will be part of what is known 
as the Hannibal & St. Joseph Cross-State Highway. The movement 
was inaugurated at Brookfield at a big meeting in February, 1912. 

There were representatives from all the counties through whicli 
the highway would pass. The following officers were elected; Presi- 
dent, Frank Adams, Chillicothe; vice president, L. M. Stallard, St. 
Joseph ; secretary-treasurer, Sydney J. Roy, Hannibal. 

The executive committeeman from Linn county is J. 0. Van Osdol 
of Bucklin. 

The following table gives the cities and towns along the route and 
their population as given by government census of 1910 : 

Hannibal 20,162 Callao 526 

Bear Creek 50 Kern 10 

Withers Mill 25 New Cambria 500 

Barkley 10 Bucklin 790 

Palmyra 2,168 Brookfield 5,749 

Woodland 100 Laclede 740 

Ely 50 Meadville 580 

Monroe 1,949 Wheeling 25 

Hunnewell 406 Cream Ridge 384 

Lakenan 137 Chillicothe 6,265 

Shelbina 2,174 Mooresville 205 

Lentner 100 Breekenridge 1,025 

Clarence 1,332 Nettleton 50 

Anabel 250 Hamilton 1,761 

Macon 3,854 Kidder 306 

Bevier 1,900 Cameron 2,600 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 253 

Osborn 200 Easton 225 

Stewartsville 400 St. Joseph 81,777 

Hemple 200 

It is not tlie purpose to stop with the standard dirt road, but to 
continue the agitation until a permanent rock road is constructed from 
the Mississippi to the Missouri river. 

Several meetings have been held since the one at Brookfield and 
the greatest interest has been manifested in the enterprise. All the 
counties have subscribed liberally and the farmers along the line have 
shown an earnest desire to take a hand in the improvement. 

The automobile, which was at first dreaded by the farmers, has 
proven to be a blessing. Owners of cars, and automobile associations 
everywhere, are taking a lead in the movement for good roads, and 
wherever you see a gathering of men to discuss that subject you will 
find the farmer and the motor car man working shoulder to shoulder in 
the good work. 

The Cross-State Highway will, it is calculated, be the parent of 
numerous good road enterprises north and south, leading into the main 
line. This will mean as much for the development of the country today 
as the railroad did fifty or sixty years ago. 

In speaking of the Hannibal & St. Joseph Cross State Highway, 
Curtis Hill, state highway engineer, recently said: 

''The plan for a Cross-State Highway across North Missouri 
from Hannibal to St. Joseph, as outlined and agreed upon at the con- 
ference at Brookfield on February 28th, is a good one, in fact, it is 
an ideal route — and the plan of organization is practical. 

"Two of the largest cities of the state just within the state, one 
upon the Missouri river, the western border, and the other upon the 
Mississippi river, which forms the eastern boundary, and with 200 
miles of rich agricultural country between them, some of the richest 
lands in the state, connected by a good, serviceable road, will indeed 
become a great highway. Well may it, as Mr. Eoy suggests, be named 
the 'Prairie Eoute.' 

"This great highway directly across the state, the most direct 
highway across Missouri that can be selected in any direction, through 
rich prairie lands, prosperous towns dotting the entire distance and 
a live city upon each terminus, will become one of the greatest in 
Missouri and bring untold benefits to that portion of the state and 
those counties through which it passes. Not only this, but it will 
exploit and help to further develop the state. It will bring to us the 



254 HISTORY OF LIXN COUNTY 

class of visitors and citizens we like to welcome — men of means and 
of affairs. Not only will this one road be of value because it will be 
a road built, but because it will mean more good roads. Better than 
one road or a few road districts will be the universal interest and 
enthusiasm aroused for good roads. It is the main road, the center 
of action, into which many other good roads will be made. 

' ' The idea is a co-operative plan whereby each community is asked 
to co-operate with that community on either side in the improvement 
of its own local road in such a manner as to connect into one great and 
continuous road. It must, therefore, be located over a road of local 
use and be of local as well as through service. In asking the citizens 
of a community to improve its section of the road they are asked to 
do no more than what they should do anyway — improve one of the 
main traveled local roads. In doing so, the community is not only 
making a much needed local improvement, but is placing itself upon 
a main thoroughfare." 



DEPARTMENT OF 
BIOGRAPHY 




^, ;^ M^^^^^^yuf. 



MAJOR A. W. MULLINS 

A gallant and intrepid Union soldier during the Civil War, 
although a native of Kentucky and of Virginia ancestry, and living at 
the time of his enlistment in a region in which there was a very strong 
sympathy with the Southern Confederacy, Major A. W. Mullins, of 
Linneus, soon after the dawn of his manhood showed himself to be a 
gentleman of independent views, deep and abiding patriotism, and 
devoted to the best interests of his .country, without regard to the 
former history and traditions of his family, uninfluenced by the seeth- 
ing political strife around him and the personal danger to himself it 
might embody, and with the courage of his convictions, whatever might 
betide. 

These characteristics have been forcibly manifested in all his 
subsequent career and have been strong elements in his success. In 
every line of activity to which duty or inclination has called him he 
has been the same forceful, self-reliant and manly man, unintimidated 
by circumstances, but commanding them to his service; undaunted by 
adversities, but making even them wings and weapons for his advance- 
ment in life; smiling in the face of difficulties and obstacles, and always 
their master; and at all times one of the most courtly, considerate and 
genial of men. 

Major Mullins was born in Marion county, Kentucky, on April 
12, 1835. He is a son of Berryman H. and Susannah Jane (Crews) 
Mullins, with whom he came to Missouri and Linn county in 1844, when 
he was nine years of age. His father was born near Petersburg, Vir- 
ginia, on March 3, 1802, and like his son, became an emigrant from his 
native heath in his boyhood, accompanying his parents to what is 
now Marion county, Kentucky, where he grew to manhood and received 
a good .common school education. He began life as a farmer and con- 
tinued as such throughout his long and somewhat eventful career. 

On his arrival in Linn county with his family in 1844 he located 
on a farm in Locust Creek township three miles southeast of Linneus, 
and there he passed the remainder of his days, dying on that farm on 
November 26, 1881, when he was nearly eighty years old. His wife, 

257 



258 HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 

who was born and reared in Kentucky, survived him for a short time, 
remaining on the old homestead to the end of her life. They were the 
parents of five sons and three daughters, and of the eight three only 
are living. 

Major Mullins was reared on the family farm from the time of his 
arrival in the county. He was educated wholly in this state, laying 
the foundation of his academic training in the .common country schools 
and completing it at McGee college in Macon county, which he attended 
during 1854, 1855 and 1856. Immediately after leaving college he 
began the study of law in the office and under the direction of Judge 
Jacob Smith, one of the eminent lawyers and judges of the state. He 
was admitted to the bar in October, 1857, his entry being made at 
Linneus before Judge James A. Clark, another man eminent in the 
legal profession in Linn county. 

The young attorney and future major began the practice of his 
profession in Linneus at once, and he rose rapidly in it until he became 
the leader of the bar in Linn county, of which he is now not only the 
leader but the Nestor, being still actively engaged in conducting his 
extensive practice, notwithstanding the fact that his years number 
almost four score. For he is still vigorous and energetic, and has as 
much abhorrence of idleness as he ever had at any period of his life. 
His high rank at the bar, which he reached early and has steadily 
maintained, is due to his profound and extensive knowledge of the law, 
his skill and resourcefulness as a practitioner, his wisdom and quick- 
ness of apprehension as a counselor, and his high character and strict 
integrity as a man, professionally and in all the relations of life. 

The major has filled a number of official positions, both civil and 
military. In 1862 he was elected to represent Linn county in the state 
legislature, and was again elected to the same trust in 1866, having 
skipped one term, but holding the office four years in all, and in the 
period between his two terms in the legislature he was appointed 
county treasurer to fill out the unexpired term in that office of a Mr. 
Hoyle, who resigned in 1865. Following this, on the expiration of his 
second service in the general assembly, he was elected county treasurer 
for a full term of two years. 

During a portion of the time he was in the legislature he found 
himself somewhat in the entanglement of conflicting duties. In the 
winter of 1861 and 1862 he enlisted in Colonel McFerrin's regiment of 
the First Missouri state militia, entering the military service as a 
private, but being soon afterward commissioned a major by Governor 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 259. 

Gamble. He had therefore to obtain leave of absence from the regi- 
ment in order to perform his duties as a representative. This was 
easily secured, however, for the times were troublous and he was 
needed in the legislature, while, although the hand of war had been 
felt in Missouri, it had not yet become so heavy that he could not be 
spared from military duty in the winter season. (For further notice 
of Major Mullin's military service see chapter on Civil War.) 

The last official position Major Mullins held was that of United 
States attorney for the western district of Missouri, to which he was 
appointed by President Grant in 1877. Although this office was in the 
line of his profession, he did not find it agreeable and resigned it before 
the end of the first year of his tenure, much to the regret of the author- 
ities at Washington, who showed their esteem for him by allowing 
him to name his own successor. In politics he is a staunch Republican 
and a great worker for his party. He is one of its leaders in his con- 
gressional district and in the state at large. For many years no cam- 
paign has been conducted by the party without his active co-operation 
in both counsel and energetic and effective service in the field. 

The major owns considerable property of value in Linn and the 
adjoining counties, and is recognized as one of the substantial men in 
this part of the state. On January 10, 1863, he was united in marriage 
with Miss Nerissa Smith, a daughter of his old preceptor in the law. 
Six children born of the union, four sons and two daughters, are liv- 
ing and have their homes in this state. 

In dress, in courtliness of manner, in high character, in fidelity 
to duty in all the relations of life, in respect for the rights and consid- 
eration for the feelings of others — in every attribute and particular — 
Major Mullins is a fine type of the southern gentleman of the old school ; 
and in all the characteristics of elevated, useful and high-minded citi- 
zenship he is an ornament to his community, his county, his state and 
his country, and would be to any country and any society. No citizen 
Linn county has ever had has stood higher than does he in the esteem 
and cordial regard and admiration of its people. Now nearing the 
age of four score years, but still hale and active, as has been stated, 
he reminds all who know him of some genial year, approaching its 
end undoubtedly, but with its seasons of warmth and beauty and 
fruitfulness not wholly spent, but still exerting their benignant influ- 
ences on the world and the people in it whose lives they have 
brightened. 



260 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

JUDGE HARRY LANDER 

(Deceased) 

Venerable in years, eminent in Ms profession and in public life, 
with a long record of usefulness in war and peace to Ms credit, and 
standing Mgli in the esteem of the people of Missouri, the late Judge 
Harry Lander, of Brookfield, passed to Ms eternal rest on December 6, 
1903, lamented by the whole city of Brookfield and county of Linn. An 
unusual coincidence, and perhaps a happy one, was that his wife, who 
was also venerable and venerated, died on the same day. Their funerals 
were held together and their remains were buried in the same grave. 

Judge Lander was born in Breckinridge county, Kentucky, on 
August 15, 1826, and lived there until he was about nine years old. His 
parents, Henry and Ann (Cleveland) Lander, then moved, with their 
eleven children, to Knox county, Illinois. There the future judge at- 
tended the public schools and assisted in the labors on his father's farm 
until he was near manhood. He also pursued a full course of academic 
instruction at Knox College and was graduated from that institution. 
He felt that his bent was toward professional life, and he chose the law 
as his field of activity in that line. He studied law in the office of Julius 
A. Manning, then one of the foremost lawyers of the state, and after his 
admission to the bar, formed a partnership with his preceptor and 
located in Peoria, Illinois, the commission authorizing him to practice 
being signed by Stephen A. Douglas, at that time the judge of the 
circuit. 

At this period Abraham Lincoln was practicing law also and living 
at Springfield, and Colonel Robert Gr. Ingersoll at Peoria. Colonel In- 
gersoll and Judge Lander had adjoining offices, and many are the inter- 
esting stories the judge used to delight in telling of the early law prac- 
tice in Illinois and incidents growing out of or connected with his asso- 
ciation with these famous American citizens. They were intimate 
friends and kindred spirits, equal in joviality and good-fellowship, and 
almost equal in anecdote and repartee, and there was probably never a 
more genial atmosphere than they created around them, in which all 
who came in contact with them shared. 

From Peoria Judge Lander moved to Chariton county, this state, 
and there continued the practice of his profession for some years. He 
came to Linn county in about 1855, and rose to prominence at the bar 
here, commanding universal respect for his abilities, and winning all 
hearts by his genial nature and rare powers as a raconteur. He was held 
in the highest esteem, also, for his strict integrity, strong manhood and 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 261 

elevated citizenship, which made him one of the finest types of admir- 
able American gentility Linn county has ever known, and its people 
have had many fine examples for comparison. 

Soon after the beginning of the Civil War Judge Lander enlisted 
in the Union army, and was made lieutenant and quartermaster of the 
Eighteenth Missouri Regiment of Infantry. At the close of the war he 
returned to Brookfield, and from 1865 to 1869 served with great credit 
and acceptability as judge of the Court of Common Pleas. When he 
retired from the bench here he went to St. Louis, where he practiced un- 
til 1877. He then returned to Brookfield, and here he continued in active 
practice until his death. 

The judge was one of the most eminent lawyers in Missouri, and 
one of the state's best known and most revered citizens. On the day 
of his funeral, out of respect to his memory and that of his wife, every 
business house in Brookfield closed its doors during the hours of the 
funeral service. Every resident of the city felt keenly the loss of a 
friend and gave testimony to this feeling in a way that left no doubt on 
the subject, and the state mourned the fall of a stately oak in its forest 
of citizenship. 

On April 18, 1861, Judge Lander was united in marriage with Miss 
Martha McCoy, a native of Lee county, Virginia, and they walked life's 
troubled way together to the end, as has been indicated. One child was 
born of their union, their son H. P. Lander, former prosecuting attorney 
of Linn county, and one of Brookfield 's most prominent lawyers and 
most esteemed and useful citizens, whose professional career has been 
very creditable to him and beneficial to the community to the present 
time (1912). 



ROBERT FINLEY MAXWELL 

This successful and prosperous farmer of Linn county, whose home 
is in Grantsville township, is living on the farm which his father hewed 
out of the wilderness in the early days of the county's history, and is in 
itself a striking illustration of the work that has been done and the 
progi'ess that has been made toward the full development of the 
county's resources and the expansion of its industrial and commercial 
power to the greatest possible extent. The farm is well improved, skill- 
fully cultivated and highly productive — a very different condition from 
that in which its first owner found it — and the change represents what 
the labor of enterprising men can accomplish when judiciously applied 
to the bounties of Nature, and in its measure speaks of Linn county in 



2G2 HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 

general and typifies what has been achieved within its borders by the 
same means. 

Mr. Maxwell was born in Shelby county, Ohio, on March 15, 1855, 
and was brought by his parents, Robert and Catherine (Lambert) Max- 
well, to Missouri and Linn county when he was but two years old. The 
father was a native of Virginia, born in July 5, 1786, and early in his 
manhood moved to Ohio. In 1857 he brought his family to this county 
and purchased the farm on which his son now lives. It was, as has 
been suggested, but a little removed from its state of primeval wilder- 
ness, and nearly all the work required to make it over into a productive 
farm was yet to be done. The father passed the rest of his life on it, 
carrying on this work with gratifying progress, and left the tract well 
improved and in a high state of productiveness when he died on April 
20, 1861. The worn and wasted tenement of his spirit was buried in 
Whitley cemetery at Laclede. The mother died on January 15, 1902, 
and her remains were buried in Bear Branch cemetery. 

Their son, Robert F. Maxwell, grew to manhood and obtained his 
education in this county, acquiring habits of useful industry and a 
thorough knowledge of the calling in life he had chosen for himself by 
practical and diligent assistance in the labor of cultivating the farm. 
Soon after leaving school he began farming on his own account, and to 
this occupation he has steadfastly adhered ever since, so well satisfied 
with it that he has never found any temptation sufficiently strong to 
induce him to even contemplate engaging in any other. He has applied 
intelligence and good judgment to his operations, and has thereby made 
himself one of the leading farmers of his township, and is taken as an 
example by others in the same business. 

Mr. Maxwell is always warmly interested in the progress and im- 
provement of the county, and does his full share of the work necessary 
to promote the desired advance. He zealously supports all worthy 
undertakings tending to this end, and is regarded as a very enterprising 
and public spirited citizen. The fraternal life of the community enlists 
his earnest attention also, and he gives his feelings on the subject ex- 
pression by active and serviceable membership in the Order of Modern 
Woodmen of America, belonging to Shelby Camp, No. 6,602 in the fra- 
ternity. He is also a devoted and consistent member of the Methodist 
Episcopal Church South. 

On September 17, 1885, he was married to Miss Mary E. Sturtevant, 
a daughter of Lyman and Elsie J. (George) Sturtevant, a sketch of 
whom will be found in this volume. Five children have been born of 
the union, and all of them are living. They are Fred L., who aids his 



HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 263 

father in managing the farm, and Herman F., Robert W., Opha Milo 
and Elsie, all of them still members of the parental family circle. The 
mother died on July 3, 1909, and all that was mortal of her was buried 
in Rose Hill cemetery in Brookfield. 



MURRAY BUSHNELL 

Born and reared on a farm, educated in the district schools, begin- 
ning life for himself as a farmer, and since then to the present time pur- 
suing the even tenor of his way in that uneventful and, even at the best, 
somewhat monotonous occupation, Murray Bushnell, of Brookfield 
township has differed but little if any in the salient points of his history 
from thousands of other men in Missouri and millions in other parts 
of the country. In his personal characteristics he differs from many, 
and in some respects, no doubt, from all other men. But even in these 
he exhibits the same virtues of integrity, uprightness and straightfor- 
wardness that pervade the masses of our people, and he also shares with 
them the enterprise and progressiveness that make them the most 
triumphant and daring race the world has ever known. 

Mr. Bushnell's life began on a Linn county farm on August 8, 1870, 
and all its subsequent years have been passed on a Linn county farm. 
He is a son of Harvey and Ruth (Mason) Bushnell, natives of Vermont, 
who came to Missouri and located in Linn county in 1868. The father 
was a merchant in his native state, but became a farmer as soon as he 
reached Missouri. He bought 320 acres of unbroken land, which he 
later increased to 640. This land he broke up, improved to some extent 
and farmed until death ended his labors in 1880. The mother is still 
living and now resides in Brookfield. They had five children, three sons 
and two daughters, and three of their offspring are residents of this 
county. 

Their son Murray was educated in the country schools in the neigh- 
borhood of the family homestead, and soon after leaving school began 
farming on his own account. He was trained to the later avocation of 
his father and it was agreeable to him. He began the battle of life in it, 
and he has adhered to it ever since. But he has conducted his operations 
in a way that has made them profitable to him and won a comfortable 
competence for life from the soil by cultivating it with skill and good 
judgment, and managing his affairs with prudence. 

On September 8, 1899, Mr. Bushnell was married to Miss Laura E. 
Arbuthnot, a daughter of James and Sarah E. (Beemer) Arbuthnot, the 
former born in Greenfield, Highland county, Ohio, on September 3, 1841, 



264 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

and the latter in Norfolk county, Canada. In 1862 the father enlisted 
in the Union army in Company E, Ninety-first Ohio Volunteer Infantry, 
as a private. Later he was raised to the rank of adjutant of the regi- 
ment, a position which he resigned in 1866. He first served in the West, 
and afterward in the Army of the Potomac. After his resignation he 
returned to his former home in Adams county, Ohio, and remained there 
a short time. 

He then came to Missouri and located on a farm in this county five 
miles south of Brookfield which he purchased. He farmed for a number 
of years and while doing so studied law, and in 1878 moved to Brook- 
field, where he practiced his profession and dealt extensively in real 
estate and loans until his death, which occurred on December 17, 1908. 
He was a gentleman of prominence and influence, a thorough business 
man and warmly interested in the progress and improvement of the city 
and county in which he lived, and the people appreciated his worth. 

Mr. and Mrs. Bushnell have one child, their son Raymond A. They 
are members of the Presbyterian Church, and zealous in promoting 
every good work undertaken by the congregation to which they belong. 



JONES BROTHERS 

These young men, Carl and J. Paul Jones, are the sons and suc- 
cessors of one of the most enterprising and successful farmers of Jeffer- 
son township, and in their operations as farmers and live stock breeders 
they are exhibiting the same business capacity, progressive enterprise 
and studious inquiry into the demands of their industries that gave him 
his great success, and also the same traits of elevated and useful citizen- 
ship that fixed him so highly and securely in the regard and good will of 
the people. 

They are the sons of the late May Jones and his wife, whose maiden 
name was Hortense Carothers. The father was born on May 26, 1854, 
on the farm which the sons are now cultivating, and which was pur- 
chased by their grandfather, Carleton Jones, about the year 1853. The 
grandfather was born in Warren, Herkimer county. New York, on 
February 26, 1817, and during his boyhood lived in various places, his 
parents being of a migratory disposition and constantly in search of a 
locality in which they could employ their faculties to the best 
advantage. 

They lived for a number of years, however, in Huron county, Ohio, 
and there their son Carleton reached his manhood on a farm and ob- 
tained his education in the common schools. There, also, he learned the 



HISTORY OF LIXX COUNTY 265 

carpenter trade, and soon afterward moved to Laporte county, Indiana, 
and in 1842 to Brunswick in Chariton county, this state. In that town 
he worked at his trade until 1849, when he joined the first great rush to 
the newly discovered gold fields of California. Three years later he re- 
turned to his former Missouri home, and on July 10, 1853, was married 
to Miss Nancy Gaines, then a resident of Chariton county, but formerly 
living in Kentucky. Soon after their marriage the young couple moved 
to Linn county, and the husband purchased the farm of 500 acres in 
Jefferson township, which has ever since been and is now the home of 
the family. 

May Jones, the father of Carl and J. Paul, was born on this farm 
in 1854, as has been noted, and died on it on April 22, 1911. In addition 
to his extensive and profitable farming operations, for a number of 
years he carried on a voluminous and profitable business in real estate 
and loan transactions, and in all his activities manifested a high order 
of business capacity and always a fine and fruitful public spirit. He 
was educated at a country school and in Laclede, and was married on 
February 12, 1880, to Miss Hortense Carothers, a daughter of James 
and Malinda (Lomax) Carothers, of Laclede. By this marriage he be- 
came the father of four children, all of whom are living. Eva, the first 
born, is now the wife of John H. Armbuster, and resides at Aurora, 
Illinois; the brothers who are the immediate subjects of this review, 
and Max, who is still living at home. The father was a Democrat 
politically, and filled a number of local offices in the township. 

Carl Jones was born on the family homestead in 1884, and has been 
employed on it ever since he was large enough to work. He began his 
education in the district school near the farm and completed it in a 
school of higher grade in Brookfield. For a number of years before his 
father's death he had the active management of the farm and conducted 
it with gratifying success, keeping himself in touch with all the ad- 
vancements in the science of agriculture and applying all the knowledge 
he could gain from diligent study and close observation of his business 
to his work greatly to his own benefit and that of the farm. 

J. Paul Jones was also born on this farm, where his life began in 
1889. He, likewise, began his education in the district school in the 
neighborhood of his home, but completed it at the State Normal School 
in Kirksville, Missouri. He was married on June 20, 1911, to Miss 
Agnes Thompson, a daughter of Parmelous M. and Nannie (Drummond) 
Thompson, of Linn county. 

After Paul left school the brothers formed a partnership for the 
management of the farm and other industries growing out of that, and 



266 HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 

this coalition is still in operation. A few years ago they saw the need of 
live stock improvement in this part of the state, and believed there was 
a fine opportunity to make an effort in this direction profitable to its 
promoters. Accordingly they began breeding Hoi stein cattle and Berk- 
shire hogs, and have ever since been enlarging their operations in this 
industry until they now occupy a leading place in it in this territory, and 
have a fine reputation in many localities for the excellence of their 
products, on which they bestow their utmost care and attention all 
the time. 

On their farm the state of Missouri has established a branch soil 
experiment station, and they have charge of it. This institution, which 
is registered as "The Oaks," is doing a great work for the farmers in 
this part of Missouri and the adjacent states, and is held in high appre- 
ciation by the people on all sides who are within reach of it, while the 
reports made of its work by the Jones brothers have an extensive circu- 
lation and are eagerly sought for and in great demand. In their farm- 
ing, in their live stock industry and in their soil experiment work these 
gentlemen are rendering the public excellent service, and their active 
and helpful interest in the affairs of the county generally is also very 
beneficial. And their work is warmly appreciated, which is very credit- 
able to the people, and all the interests that have the benefit of it. 



PEOPLES BANK OF BROWNING 

This is a state bank and was founded in July, 1902, with a capital 
stock of $30,000, all paid in. The first officers were J. W. Sclirock, 
president; James Neet, vice president; S. L. Gibson, cashier, and E. C. 
Bailey, assistant cashier. Mr. Schrock died soon after the bank was 
started, and J. G. Watson served as president for one year, at the end 
of which he was succeeded by James Neet, who is still at the head of 
the institution. At this time H. C. Bailey was chosen vice president and 
E. C. Bailey, assistant cashier. The first board of directors was com- 
posed of J.'W. Schrock, J. G. Watson, J. I. Van Fossen, W. E. Duck- 
worth, James Neet, S. L. Gibson and Benjamin Mairs. The board is 
now the same as at first except that C. H. Wallace succeeded Mr. 
Schrock as a member, and was in turn succeeded by A. E. Lambert. 
The directors are all men of large interests and high standing where 
they live, and are well known throughout this section of the country. 
The bank has now a surplus of $6,500. It carries on a general banking 
business embracing all approved modern forms of banking. 

Samuel Ij. Gibson, the organizer of the bank and its cashier from 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 267 

the beginning of its history, is a native of Benton township, Linn 
county, and came into being on a farm south of Browning on September 
6, 1858. He is a son of George W. and Harriet A. (Schrock) Gibson, 
the former a native of this county and the latter of Virginia. The father 
was born on a Linn county farm in 1837. He grew to manhood on that 
farm, which he assisted in clearing, and resided on it until 1866. He 
then bought 500 acres of unimproved land south of Browning, which 
he improved, brought to advanced productiveness and resided on for 
thirty years. 

In 1897 he moved to Browning, where he now lives, and where the 
mother died in 1909. They had four children who are living, their son 
Samuel L. being the only one of the four resident in this county. The 
father is a Freemason and an Odd Fellow, being a charter member of the 
lodge in the latter fraternity to which he belongs. His parents, William 
F. and Sarah (Brookshire) Gibson, came from their native state of 
Tennessee to this county in 1835, making the journey with teams and 
bringing their cattle and other movable property along with them. 

A few months after their arrival in this county they entered a tract 
of timber land, which they cleared and on which the mother died in 
1855. The rest of the family lived on that farm until 1866, when they 
separated, the grandfather of Samuel moving to Browning, where he 
died in 1888. He and his wife were the parents of five sons and three 
daughters, all of whom are living but two. After the death of his first 
wife, the grandfather married one of her sisters as his second wife, and 
by this marriage he became the father of three children, two of whom, 
both sons, are living. In politics he was first a Whig, and after the 
death of the Whig party, a Democrat. 

Samuel L. Gibson was reared on his father's farm in Benton towm 
ship, and obtained his education in the district school in its vicinity. 
He engaged in farming until 1894, when he moved to Browning to take 
the cashiership of the Peoples Exchange Bank. In 1897 this institution 
became the Farmers Exchange Bank, and he served as its cashier until 
1902, when he resigned and organized the Peoples Bank of Browning, 
with which he has ever since been connected. He also assisted in orgam 
izing and now represents the Stockgrowers Bank of Purdin, the Citizens 
Bank of Winigan, the Citizens Bank of Laredo, the Citizens Bank of 
Linneus, the Farmers State Bank of New Boston, the Citizens Bank of 
Bucklin, and the Farmers and Traders Bank of Dawn, the last a private 
institution, which is under the management of one of Mr. Gibson's sons, 
Arthur E., the first born of his offspring. 

In 1903 Mr. Gibson sold all his farming and other land in this 



268 HISTORY OF LINA^ COUNTY 

county, and also a farm of 2,700 acres wliicli lie owned in Kansas, and 
since then he has given all his time and attention to the affairs of the 
bank. But he still owns his beautiful and finely appointed residence in 
Browning. This is one of the most attractive and best equipped dwell- 
ings in Linn county, and although it is located in a town of less than 
1,000 inhabitants, it would adorn a fashionable residence district in 
some large city. The dwelling house is located on a commanding site 
four blocks from the Peoples Bank, and adjoining it is an eight-acre 
tract of land sloping gracefully to the south and west. 

From basement to roof the building is a model in design and equip- 
ment. It contains ten rooms above the basement, heated by hot water 
throughout and thoroughly lighted by the Datonia Acetylene gas sys- 
tem with electric igniters, making its illumination as convenient as if 
done by electric lighting. From an exhaustless living well the entire 
building is supplied with hot and cold water by means of the Bethalto 
Water System of St. Louis, run by a gasoline engine, and the United 
States American Radiator heating apparatus. The cooking is done by 
gas heat and the laundering and similar work is done in the basement, 
which is sealed with cement and perfectly dry. The apartments on the 
first floor, with the exception of the kitchen and bath room are all 
thrown together by open grill work. In all parts the living apartments 
are artistically adorned, and the furniture is in keeping with all the 
other features of the residence. 

At present this beautiful home is occuj^ied by only Mr. Gibson and 
his wife, their three sons being all in business at other places. Mrs. 
Gibson's maiden name was Flora M. Purdin, and she is a daughter of 
Luther and Susan (Lane) Purdin, residents of Linn county who are 
held in the highest esteem. She was united in marriage with Mr. Gib- 
son on August 17, 1884, and they have three sons: Arthur E. is in charge 
of one of his father's banks, which is located at Dawn, Livingston 
county, this state; Roy E. is a director and the secretary of the Commer- 
cial Trust Company of St. Louis; and Lyle C. is receiving teller in the 
day and Night Bank in that city. They are all young men of high 
character and fine business and social qualities, and share fully in the 
cordial regard in which their father and mother are held in this county, 
and also stand well in the esteem of the people where they are now 
living. 

In political relations Mr. Gibson is a Democrat of firm faith in the 
principles of his party and loj^al to its interests to the core. But he 
has never been a very active partisan, and at no time in. his life has he 
desired a public office of any kind. Fraternally he is connected with 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 269 

the Masonic Order, the Order of Odd Fellows and the Modern Woodmen 
of America, In support of the material advancement of his county and 
northern Missouri, he is always earnest, energetic and far-seeing; and 
with reference to moral, mental and social advancement, and efforts to 
promote it, he is one of the most diligent and resourceful men in this 
part of the state. All over Missouri his name stands high in public 
estimation, and all who know him well agree that no rank in citizenship 
is above what his genuine merit entitles him to hold and enjoy. 



JAMES DUDLEY SHIFFLETT 

Of French ancestry on his father's side and British on his mother's, 
and the grandson of two men who fought on opposite sides during our 
Revolutionary War, but afterward became good and true American 
citizens, and with his father making a creditable record as a soldier 
in the War of 1812, James Dudley Shifflett, for many years one of the 
leading farmers and public officials of Linn county, had plenty of in- 
spiration to good citizenship and valor in war, if he had occasion to 
show it, in the history and examples of his forefathers. His record gives 
abundant proof that he has lived up to the standard of patriotism set 
by them, although he has never followed the flag of his country to the 
battlefield. 

Mr. Shifflett is a genuine old-timer in Missouri, and has passed the 
whole of his eighty-six years of life within the confines of the state. He 
was born in Howard county on April 18, 1825, and is a son of Hasten 
and Susan (Estell) Shifflett. The father was born in Virginia in 1791, 
and after reaching manhood farmed extensively in that state. He 
promptly joined the American army at the beginning of the War of 
1812, and took part in several of its most sanguinary battles. He was 
taken prisoner at the defeat of Col. Dudley's troops and for some time 
thereafter languished in captivity. 

About the year 1802 he left Virginia with his parents in their 
removal to Kentucky, whither the tide of emigration was then moving 
in considerable volume, and found a new home with the family on a 
farm in Madison county in that state. Twenty-one years later, in 1823, 
he moved to Missouri and took up his residence in Howard county, 
where he remained imtil 1846. In that year he changed his residence to 
Linn county, in the vicinity of Linneus, and there he passed the re- 
mainder of his days, dying on his farm on December 2, 1877. His 
remains were buried in Fore cemetery amid many manifestations of 
popular respect and esteem. 



270 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

Mr. Sliifflett was married in 1811 to Miss Susan Estell, and tliey 
became the parents of fifteen children, three of whom are still living; 
James Dudley, the immediate subject of this brief review, who resides 
with his daughter on her farm seven or eight miles north of Brookfield 
and about five miles due east of Linneus ; Hasten Tussey, whose home is 
at Krum, Texas; and Lorenzo Dow, who is a resident of Arkansas. The 
mother died in 1872, and her remains were buried in Fore cemetery also. 

Mr. Sliifflett 's paternal grandfather, Thomas Sliifflett, was a French 
soldier and in one of the bodies of troops that came from France to assist 
the American colonies in their war for independence. He found this 
country agreeable to him and became an American citizen, making his 
home in Virginia. The grandfather on the mother's side, George Estell, 
was a British soldier whom the fortunes of the same w^ar brought to 
our shores. He came as a belligerent to aid in our .conquest or subjuga- 
tion to British rule, but he too was pleased with the country, and never 
returned to his own. After the Eevolution he swore allegiance to the 
United States and passed the rest of his life in this country as one of its 
most loyal and dutiful citizens, acquiring considerable wealth. 

James D. Shifflett became a resident in Linn county in 1846, at the 
very dawn of his manhood, and began farming on Parson creek. Dur- 
ing the Civil War he served about nineteen months in the Home Guards, 
which comprises all the military service he ever saw. From 1852 to 
1863 he was a teacher in the country schools of the county, and after- 
wards he served as judge of probate for a term of four years. After 
the end of his term as probate judge he served some years as public ad- 
ministrator, and prior to it was assessor of the North East district of 
the county when it was divided into four assessment districts; and from 
time to time, when he was occupying no other office, he has been pre- 
vailed on to accept that of justice of the peace. 

On September 5, 1852, Mr. Sliifflett was united in marriage with 
Miss Mary Elizabeth Pace. Eleven children were born of the union and 
six of them grew to maturity. Five are now living: C. H., whose home 
is at Milton, Iowa ; Ann Eliza, who is the wife of T. H. Barbee, of Lac- 
lede, Missouri; Miss Lou, who is at present living on the home farm with 
her parents; Emma Elizabeth, the wife of J. B. Carothers, who also 
resides in Laclede; and George W., who is living on and cultivating the 
farm. 

The venerable patriarch, whose life-story is briefly told in this 
memoir, is an interesting link which connects the remote past of Linn 
county, when it was just emerging from the wilderness, putting on the 
garb of civilization and starting on its luminous career of progress and 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 271 

development, with its present advanced state of improvement, industrial 
and commercial i30wer and earnest aspirations toward far loftier heights 
of attainment. He has witnessed every step of the advance, and accord- 
ing to his opportunities and ability, has helj^ed them all along. At no 
time in his life has he ever hesitated to perform his part of the work of 
improvement, or withheld his hand from any undertaking designed to 
further and quicken the movement. The people of the county know his 
record and revere him for the service he has rendered and the example 
of elevated and useful citizenship he has given and is still giving. He is 
one of the most esteemed men in this part of the state, and well deserves 
to be. 



ALLEN W. PURDIN 

Having been actively engaged in general farming and raising live 
stock on a scale as large as his facilities would allow from his j'outh, 
first, for a number of years under the direction and supervision of his 
father, and also for other men, and for a long time now on his own 
account; having conducted his operations in Indiana, Ohio and Missouri, 
and encountered different conditions and requirements in all of these 
states; and having had at least a taste of military service during the 
Civil War, Allen W. Purdin, an enterprising, progressive and therefore 
prosperous farmer of Linn county, Grantsville township, has had ex- 
perience in useful labor and association with men in several widely 
separated places and in a variety of occupations and surroundings. He 
has profited by his experience in building up his career, and made all 
its lessons tell to his advantage. 

Mr. Purdin is a native of Madison, Jefferson county, Indiana, where 
Ms life began on June 10, 1833. His father was Charles B. Purdin, who 
was born on February 28, 1796, and was a farmer and mechanic. He 
moved to Ohio with his parents wlien he was a boy, and with them 
found a new home in Brown county. There he was reared, educated 
and acquired an intimate practical knowledge of the two employments 
he followed through life. In 1819 he was united in marriage with Miss 
Mary Duffy, and by this marriage they became the parents of twelve 
children, only three of whom are now living: Alexander, who resides 
at Purdin, in this county; Charles, whose home is in Muskogee, Okla- 
homa ; and Allen W., whose dwelling is six miles north of Brookfield. 

The last named, who is the interesting subject of this brief review, 
came to Missouri with his parents in 1871, and located with them in 
Howard county, where he remained four years. In 1875 the whole 



273 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

family moved to Linn county, and took up their residence near where 
the village of Purdin now stands. The father donated the land for the 
townsite of this village, and in grateful recognition of his generosity, 
the people named the place in his honor. The father passed away in 
Linneus. His remains were buried in the cemetery at Purdin. 

Since coming to Missouri, Mr. Purdin, the son, has always followed 
farming and been engaged in raising live stock. To both lines of his 
undertaking he has given careful study and close attention, welcoming 
any new suggestion in either that seemed good to him, and endeavoring 
by all the means at his command to keep abreast with the most advanced 
thought and most approved methods in both. As a result he has pros- 
pered and risen to the front rank as a farmer and stock man in his 
township, ancT is widely and favorably known for his enterprise and 
progressiveness in other parts of the county. For, while he is not de- 
monstrative in reference to his work, his methods and the results 
achieved by them have attracted attention and fixed his reputation as 
one of the leading agriculturists in this part of the state. 

Mr. Purdin is also highly esteemed as an enterprising and public 
spirited citizen, who can always be relied on to take his part and do his 
full share in promoting all lines of public improvement and aiding in 
the progress and development of the county to its highest standard of 
power in material productiveness and wealth, and its loftiest plane of 
intellectual, moral, social and civil attainment. He is a member of the 
Christian Church, and has served as one of the elders in the congrega- 
tion to which he belongs during the last fourteen years. He also served 
ninety days in the Provisional Guard during the Civil War, being en- 
rolled on the Union side of the great sectional conflict that came so near 
tearing our country asunder. 

On January 1, 1858, Mr. Purdin was married to Miss Anna Lane, a 
daughter of William Lane, long esteemed residents of Chariton 
county, this state. Of the four children born of the union three are 
living: William E., who is a prosperous farmer dwelling on a fine 
tract of land one mile south of his father's place; and Charles 
and Elizabeth, who are still members of the parental family circle, 
and assisting their parents in the labors of the farm and its 
agreeable and hospitable household. All the members of the family 
stand well in the community and are highly esteemed for the upright- 
ness of their lives, their interest in the welfare of their township and 
county, and their excellent examples as high-toned and estimable 
citizens. 



HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 273 

WILLARD WOLFE 

Having devoted the whole of his life from his youth to farming, and 
made a study of the business in all its bearings, Willard Wolfe, of 
Brookfield township, has become a master of his occupation and one of 
its best representatives in Linn county. Side issues have never diverted 
him from his main purpose, and his devotion has therefore been wholly 
given to that; and, as he has looked upon it as his work for life, he has 
been energetic and thoughtful in his efforts to secure the best returns 
for his labors and make his farm yield up its full tribute of productive- 
ness in obedience to his masterly and persuasive hand as a husbandman. 

Mr. Wolfe is a native of Knox county, Illinois, where his life began 
on March 16, 1870. He is a son of Warren and Sarah E. (Buck) Wolfe, 
and a brother of Frank M. Wolfe, postmaster of Marceline, in a sketch 
of whom to be found in this volume, the family history is given. He 
was but four years old when the family moved to this state, and as he 
grew to manhood, Avas educated, married and has passed all his mature 
years in Missouri, he is practically a Missourian, and is as devoted to 
the institutions, the people and the enduring welfare of the state of his 
adoption as he ever could have been to that of his birth. 

No worthy undertaking involving the good of his township or 
county, or the benefit of their residents ever goes without his active and 
effective aid. No public interest of any kind in his locality fails to en- 
gage his attention and his energetic service in its behalf, and no mental, 
moral or social agency at work among its people for their betterment 
lacks his cordial and serviceable support. He is a public spirited citi- 
zen, even though a modest one, and the residents of the county warmly 
esteem him as such, in as great measure as they admire him as an ex- 
cellent and representative farmer, whose work is a credit to the whole 
region in the midst of which it is carried on. 

Mr. Wolfe was married on March 29, 1893, to Miss Lila J. Cur- 
tis, a daughter of T. J. and M. C. (Witt) Curtis, residents of Linn 
county for over fifty years. Eight .children have been born in the Wolfe 
household, and all of them are living. They are: Inez, Jasper, Elmer, 
Earl, Ethel, Otis, Ralph and Grace. To the present time (1912) the 
family circle is unbroken, as all the children are still living under the 
shelter of the parental rooftree. 

In politics Mr. Wolfe votes with the Republican party and works 
for its success, but he is not an active partisan with any desire for the 
rewards of party service in the way of public office. He is a Republican 



274 HISTORY OF LIXN COUNTY 

from the firm belief in the principles of the party, and works for it on 
the conviction that its supremacy would be the best thing for the 
county, the state and the nation, and in their welfare he is always deeply 
and intelligently interested. He and the members of his family are well 
and favorably known in all parts of the county and enjoy the good will 
and respect of all its people of every class and condition, which they 
fully deserve from every point of view and in reference to all the rela- 
tions of life. 



JONATHAN KNIGHT 

From his boyhood this enterprising, progressive and successful 
farmer of Clay township, in this county, has been connected with the 
agricultural industry, and his zeal in it has been exhibited in four of 
the great commonwealths of the American Union. He was trained to it, 
has found it agreeable, has made it profitable, and has never sought any 
other occupation. And by studious attention to the needs of his calling 
and intelligent study of the land on which he exercises it, he has risen 
to high rank in it in this part of the country, and established himself in 
the judgment of the people around him as one of its ablest exemplars. 

Mr. Knight was born in Washington county, Pennsylvania, on June 
23, 1840, and is a son of William and Hannah (Fisher) Knight, also 
natives of that state. The father was born there in 1810, and grew to 
manhood there, obtaining his education in the district schools and at 
Wainsburg College. He was a Quaker in religious belief and belonged 
to families long connected with the branch of the Christian Church in 
which he held his membership. He farmed in Pennsylvania until 1863, 
then moved to Mahaska county, Iowa, where he bought a farm which 
he cultivated many years. He died in Oskaloosa in that county in 1897, 
having outlived by seven years his wife, who passed away in 1890. 
They were the parents of four sons and three daughters. Four of the 
seven are living, but Jonathan is the only one of them who resides in this 
county or the state of Missouri. 

His paternal grandfather, whose name was also Jonathan Knight, 
was for a long time a farmer in Washington county, Pennsylvania, and 
was chief engineer of the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad, where he died 
well advanced in years. He was a son of Able Knight, an Englishman 
by birth and for some time a resident of the island of Newfoundland, 
where he was a cod fisherman. From there he moved to Pennsylvania 
and turned his attention to farming, and in this occupation he passed 
the remainder of his life, dying at a good old age in Pennsylvania. 



HISTOEY OP LINN COUNTY 275 

His son Jonathan, grandfather of Jonathan Knight of this sketch, 
was well educated and became a man of prominence and influence in 
Pennsylvania, representing his Pennsylvania district in the Congress of 
the United States in 1858 and 1859, or the term embracing those years, 
which was the stormy period, or breaking out of the Civil War. 

In the national House of Representatives he had good standing, but 
he did not remain long enough to make a record of imposing character, 
for that takes time. It is set down to his credit, however, that he was 
always true to his convictions and faithful to his duty in every parti- 
cular. 

Jonathan Knight of our day and Clay township, like his father, 
grew to manhood and obtained his education in his native state. He 
began life for himself as a Pennsylvania farmer, but feeling a strong 
attraction toward the West, moved to Illinois in 1862, when he was 
twenty-two years old, and the next year changed his residence to Iowa. 
In 1877 he came to Linn county, Missouri, to live, and bought the farm 
which is now his home. He has improved this place considerably, put- 
ting up good buildings and fences, and by skillful cultivation has 
brought it forward to a high state of productiveness, besides making it 
attractive in appearance and condition. 

On April 23, 1862, Mr. Knight was united in marriage with Miss 
Evelin B. West, a daughter of Edward and Mary (Neblic) West, whose 
family history is given in a sketch of Henry West to be found elsewhere 
in this work. Mr. and Mrs. Knight have four children, all daughters 
and all living. They are: Mary H., who resides at Utica, Livingston 
county, Missouri, and is the wife of J. Cady; Jennie E., the wife of W. R. 
Kent, whose home is near Osgood, Sullivan county, this state; Nora, 
who is a resident of Linn county and the wife of S. C. Kohn; and Alice 
E., who married Prof. W. L. Cochrane, who has been superintendent of 
several city schools and lives with him at Aberdeen, South Dakota. 

Mr. Knight has followed general farming and confined his attention 
to that except what h'ttle he has given to raising live stock on a small 
scale. He has alwayj; oeen deeply interested in the welfare and progress 
of his township and been one of its most useful and enterprising citizens 
in reference to public improvements and all other forms of development. 
He, and the members of his family, belong to the Cumberland Presby- 
terian Church (he being an elder). They all take an active and helpful 
interest. He is well and favorably known in all parts of the county, 
and all over it he is highly respected as a good man, a progressive 
farmer and an excellent and steadily useful citizen. 



276 HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 

DR. HAMILTON DeGRAW 

(Deceased) 

By the death of the late Dr. Hamilton DeGraw there passed into 
the history of Brookfield and Linn county the record of their oldest 
citizen and the achievements of their most remarkable business man, 
financier and genuine philosopher. What he accomplished for the 
benefit of his home city and county in the way of development and 
improvement are part of their imperishable legacy from the past. The 
example of elevated and progressive citizenship, broad public spirit 
and unwavering domestic virtue which he gave the people of this 
region has enshrined his memory in their hearts, to live ever among 
them in perpetual vigor and fragrance, an incitement to generous en- 
deavor, a watchword to the faithful, a stimulus to the flagging, an 
encouragement to the struggling and a bounteous benefaction to all. 

Seldom, if ever, has the pen of the biographer a more engaging 
theme than the life story of a good citizen who has grown old in the 
service of the people around him, and has lived to see the fruit of his 
labors in their prosperity and happiness, and the established success 
of valued institutions, to whose creation and development he has essen- 
tially contributed. Such a theme is presented in the career of the late 
Dr. Hamilton DeGraw, of Brookfield, who passed from the scene of all 
earthly activity on Thursday morning, February 1, 1912, at the age of 
ninety-five years, one month and six days, with all his faculties clear 
and every mental and moral force vital and energetic until the day 
before his dissolution came. 

Dr. DeGraw was a resident of Brookfield continuously from 1867 
to the time of his death. He located in that part of the county, in 
fact, six years prior to the founding of the city, which took place in 
April, 1873, and during his long life in the locality there was scarcely a 
day in which he was not busy planning or executing some undertaking 
for the progress of the region and the enduring welfare of its resi- 
dents. For his mind was very alert and active, the sweep of his vision 
was wide, his resourcefulness was comprehensive and his ideals were 
lofty and humanitarian. When he came to Linn county the whole 
region was largely still a wilderness, but he seemed to anticipate the 
future affluence of empire that was to distinguish it and hear in fancy 
the tramp of legions yet to march in and occupy and make the most 
of it; and all his projects were designed and his energies employed 
to further all movements tending toward its present high state of 
development. 




^^,^ — -ys/cx^-t-'i.'^.^i-t^Cc^^^ 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 277 

Dr. Hamilton DeGraw was born in Rockland countj^, New York, 
on Christmas day, 1816. During his boyhood his parents, who were in 
very moderate circumstances, moved to New York city, and there the 
doctor was reared and obtained his academic education in private 
schools. Soon after completing this he began the study of medicine 
to prepare himself for the profession he had chosen as his life's work, 
and which he so long and so conspicuously adorned. For two years 
he pursued his professional studies in the office of Dr. Robert Nelson, 
of New Y^ork, and then passed one year in the medical department of 
the state university, and one at the College of Physicians in Albany, 
the state capital, from which he was graduated with the degree of 
M. D. in 1840. Here, then, came one of the pathetic incidents of his 
life. He had nothing in the way of worldly possessions as equipment 
for his advancement among men but his medical diploma, and was 
forced to borrow money with which to get back to his home. But the 
incident did not discourage him. It only stimulated his zeal and made 
him more determined than ever to make a successful career, which he 
felt within him he had the power to work out as well as the will to 
use that power for the purpose. 

After his return home the doctor practiced his profession a few 
years in New York city, then abandoned it as a regular practitioner, 
although he never lost his love for it and always took a great and 
helpful interest in its advancement and that of the science which it 
represents. He had heard, however, the voice of great Nature calling 
her child to the field of labor for which she had designed him, and 
pointing him to a then distant portion of the country as one in which 
his services were greatly needed, and in which he could make them 
of great advantage to it and himself as well. 

In 1856 he came to Missouri and Linn county to live, traveling 
from New York to Chicago and Quincy, Illinois, by rail, and from 
Quincy to Linneus by stage. In 1867 he moved to Brookfield, and there 
he passed the remainder of his days. Soon after his location at Brook- 
field he started the banking house of H. DeGraw, with himself as 
president, and his brother, the late Maj. W. H. DeGraw, as cashier. 
In 1882 he organized the Linn County Bank, to which he transferred 
the business of the DeGraw bank, and of this new institution Judge 
W. H. Brownlee was made president and Major DeGraw was continued 
as cashier. About twenty years later the Brownlee Banking Company 
was organized and Dr. DeGraw once more took charge of the Linn 
County Bank as president. He remained at the head of the bank for 



278 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

about ten years and then, feeling somewhat the weight of years, he 
retired. 

Dr. DeGraw was married in Hannibal, Missouri, in 1868, to Miss 
Mary P. Dick, who is still living. Two children were born of their 
union, their son Richard X., who, also, is living, and their daughter 
Myo, who died in childhood some thirty years ago. To all the inter- 
ests of his family the doctor was sedulously attentive at all times. He 
had the courtly gallantry of the olden time toward his wife, and it was 
not a manner assumed, but flowed from his genuine and ever continu- 
ing affection, and was born of the sincere gentility of his nature. His 
treatment of his children, while impelled and guided by a high sense 
of duty, was yet full of the most tender solicitude for their comfort, 
happiness and enduring welfare. 

The venerable man whose life story is here but briefly and imper- 
fectly narrated lived fifty-five years in Missouri and nearly half a 
century among the people of Brookfield, and of all the men, women 
and children who knew him in his later years, -there was not one who 
did not do him reverence. Living to near the century mark in years 
and being when he died so universally honored and revered, he could 
not but know how well the people among whom he had passed so long 
a period of usefulness esteemed him. He survived his own wake, so 
1:0 speak, and overheard the judgment of posterity. While his course 
in life did not lie along the points and pinnacles of great affairs where 
History holds her splendid march, he discharged with fidelity and zeal 
and cheerfulness every public and private duty, and thereby contrib- 
uted most directly and essentially to the welfare of his city and his 
fellowmen of every class and condition. The record he made and 
the example he gave will for generations to come be an inspiration to 
the young men of the community, and will teach them, while it incites 
them to action, that the best basis of true personal and lasting regard 
is high character, upright living and faithful attention to every claim 
of exalted, self-reliant and useful citizenship. 



BENJAMIN F. THOMAS 

(Deceased) 

The sudden and tragic death of this well known and highly 
esteemed citizen and progressive and successful farmer of Linn county 
on June 30, 1909, at the early age of forty-six years, threw the whole 
township of nis residence into gloom and gave a shock to many persons 
in all parts of Linn county. On the date given, he was killed by a stroke 



HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 279 

of lightning, a disaster that ended a life serviceable at the time and 
full of promise of far greater usefulness. For he was in full vigor, physi- 
cally and mentally, and his plans for greater advancement and more 
considerable undertakings were just reaching their maturity. 

Mr. Thomas was born in Linn county on April 18, 1863, and passed 
the whole of his life in this county. He was a son of John L. and 
Marjery Jane Thomas, natives of Illinois. They came to this county 
in 1855, and here the father took up a tract of wild land and made an 
excellent and valuable farm of it, remaining here until his death, which 
occurred in 1901. His widow is still living and now resides in Colorado. 
They were the parents of six sons, four of whom are living. The father 
succeeded in his operations in this county, and at his death was well- 
to-do and held- in high regard in all parts of the county. He was a 
prominent and very devout and zealous member of the Baptist church. 

His son Benjamin was reared and educated in this county, and when 
he began the battle of life for himself entered it in the occupation of a 
farmer, to which he had been well trained on the parental homestead. 
He never had or sought any other employment, but continued farming 
until his death, making steady progress from a small beginning and ris- 
ing all the time in the confidence, approval and esteem of the public. 

Mr. Thomas was married on February 17, 1885, to Miss Mattie Bow- 
yer, a daughter of L. F. Bowyer and a descendant of one of the first 
families to locate in Linn county. The progenitors of the branch of the 
family that has lived in this county from the dawn of its history, Will- 
iam and Jesse Bowyer, with the family of the former, located on Locust 
creek in January, 1832, having come to this locality from Howard 
county. Soon afterward the men returned to Howard county and 
brought up the family of Jesse Bowyer. The first white child born in 
Linn county was Thomas Benton Bowyer, a son of this William Bowyer 
and his wife, whose maiden name was Martha Tyre, and the first female 
child born in Locust Creek township was a daughter of William Bow- 
yer 's brother Jesse. Mrs. Thomas is a direct descendant of the William 
Bowyer here alluded to. 

Mr. and Mrs. Thomas were the parents of four children, all of whom 
are living: James F., Bertie F., Claude B. and Nellie M. Their mother 
is living also and still occupies the farm improved by her husband. She 
has managed it with skill and good judgment since his death, kept up 
the improvements with energy and carried on all its operations with the 
same vigor and success that he displayed. She and her children are 
among the most enterprising, public-spirited and progressive residents 



280 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

of the township, and the people throughout its extent and in many other 
parts of the county hold them all in the highest esteem for their excel- 
lent characters, upright lives, cordial interest in the welfare of their 
home region, and genuine usefulness and worth in every way and in 
connection with every interest of the people living around them. 



JOHN M. JONES 



This successful merchant and former prominent and esteemed 
school teacher, who is one of the leading citizens of New Boston, Baker 
township, is a native of Linn county and has passed the greater part of 
his life to the present time (1912) within its borders. He was born at 
Bottsville, now Meadville, Linn ,county, Missouri, or near that town, on 
April 8, 1855. He has passed nine years of his life in Macon county and 
seven in Grundy county, but all the rest have been spent in Linn. 

He is a son of Hardin and Susan J. (Yates) Jones, natives of 
Missouri and Kentucky, and they came to this county in 1852. The 
father was a farmer in both Howard and Linn counties. He was born 
on July 27, 1824, in Boone county, Missouri, and died on his Macon 
county farm in 1892. He was a Democrat in political faith and be- 
longed to the Christian Church in religious fellowship. His parents, 
Christopher and Martha (Yates) Jones, came to Boone county in 1819, 
from the old Kentucky home of the family in the long, overland and 
oftentimes dangerous journey to the land which held out great promises 
of prosperity. 

His father, Christopher Jones, commonly called "Kit Jones," came 
to the state first in 1818 and selected a home for his family in Boone 
county. He then went back to Kentucky for the other members of his 
household and soon had them located on the tract of wild land he had 
secured for his future use, improvement and enjoyment. He lived on 
the farm he cleared and improved until his death, which occurred in 
3867. He also belonged to the Democratic party and served it loyalh'' 
from the dawn of his manhood. In religious connection he was a 
Baptist. 

He was born in Kentucky in 1796, and was therefore seventy-one 
years of age when he died. The mother, that is, the grandmother of 
J. M. Jones, was born in 1800 and died in 1884, at the age of eighty-four. 
They were married in 1819. Their son Hardin Jones, when he left home, 
took up his residence in Howard county, where he remained until 1852, 
when he moved his family to Linn county, as has been stated. Of the 



HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 281 

five sons born to his parents, one of his brothers is the only one now 
living. He owns and cultivates the old family homestead in Boone 
county. There were also four daughters in the family, and all of them 
also are deceased. 

J. M. Jones is one of seven children born in his father's household, 
five of whom are living; the other four being his brothers Robert 
W., Milton S., Christopher H. and Mrs. Corena F. Howard. He 
was reared on his father's farm in this county, and after completing 
his education taught school for a number of years. He was engaged 
in teaching school from 1874 to 1882, and then turned his attention to 
merchandising. In 1885 he sold his business and again taught school 
until 1887. In that year he once more entered mercantile life, and in 
this he has been actively engaged ever since. 

While teaching in the winters of 1874 and 1875, Mr. Jones pursued 
special courses of training at tlie Kirksville State Normal School during 
his vacations. He is connected with the Christian Church in religious 
affiliation, with the Masonic order fraternally and with the Democratic 
party in politics. In each of these organizations he takes an earnest 
interest and in all their proceedings he is an active participant. He is 
devoted in his loyalty to them all and at all times ready and willing to 
render them any service in his power. 

On December 28, 1876, Mr. Jones was united in marriage with Miss 
Fannie Davis, a native of Linn county born on March 2, 1858. Her 
parents moved to Macon county in her girlhood, and for a number of 
years she had her home in that county, and it was there Mr. Jones be- 
came acquainted with her and they were married. They have three 
children: Susan, who is now the wife of Dr. W. W. Ellis, of Marceline; 
Harvey V., one of the two sons, who resides in Bucklin; and Elmer 0., 
the other son, who is a law student in state university in the city of 
Columbia, Missouri. Tlie wife and mother is still living. 

Mr. Jones takes an unusually warm interest in the progress and 
further development of the township and county in which he lives, and 
supports with ardor and intelligence all worthy undertakings for their 
improvement and the substantial and enduring welfare of their resi- 
dents. He is a gentleman of influence, and is useful to the county not 
only by what he does himself, but also through the forces awakened 
and put to work by the force of his example. The people of Baker town- 
ship look upon him as one of their best and most representative citizens, 
and this estimate is the one placed upon him generally throughout the 
county. 



282 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

THOMAS D. EVANS 

Born of a military family and a direct descendant of a soldier in the 
Revolution and a soldier in the War of 1812 ; himself a member of the 
state militia during the Civil War and taking part in several of its 
lighter engagements; filling several important civil offices with credit 
to himself and advantage to the people, and for a period of forty-three 
years engaged in cultivating his Parson Creek township farm, which 
is still his home, Thomas D. Evans has a fine family record and has him- 
self been a man of great usefulness to Linn county and is held in the 
highest esteem for the services he has rendered and the high character, 
fidelity to duty and elevated citizenship he has always shown. 

Mr. Evans was born in Madison county, Kentucky, on September 6, 
1844, and is a son of AVilliam and Paulina (Cornelison) Evans, also 
natives of Kentucky. The father was a farmer and during the Civil 
War adhered to the side of the Union, although he had a brother in the 
Confederate army under General Sterling Price. Another of his broth- 
ers was killed in the Mexican War. He and his wife both died in Linn 
county. They were the parents of four children, two of whom are living. 

The grandfather, John G. Evans, served under General William 
Henry Harrison in the War of 1812, and took part in many of the battles 
of that second conflict with the mother country, especially those against 
the hostile Indians. The great-grandfather, Edward Evans, was a Vir- 
ginia planter of prominence in the early history of the state and its later 
colonial history. When the war of the Revolution began he went 
promptly to the front in defense of freedom and independence of Great 
Britain, under the command of Washington, and continued in the strug- 
gle until victory crowned the American arms through the genius of the 
great captain at their head and the loyalty, heroic courage and patriotic 
ardor of the troops which he commanded. The family is of Welsh de- 
scent, five brothers coming from Wales to the United States in colonial 
times. Two of them settled in Virginia and the other three in Tennesee 
and Kentucky. 

When Thomas D. Evans was twelve years old his parents moved to 
Pettis coimty, Missouri, from their "old Kentucky home," and in that 
county and the adjoining one of Saline they resided until 1864. During 
the Civil War their son Thomas D. was enrolled in the Sixty-second 
Regiment, Missouri State Militia, and was in active service four months. 
His military experience, however, was confined to this state and led him 
into none of the leading battles of the conflict. But he participated in 
the fight at Marshall, Saline county, and a number of skirmishes. 



HISTORY OF LINX COUNTY 383 

In 1864 he located at Meadville, this county, and opened the first 
store at that place. He continued merchandising five years, and during 
that period served as postmaster of Meadville and also as depot and ex 
press agent for the railroad. In 1869 he moved to the farm on which he 
now lives m Parson Creek township, which comprises 240 acres of well 
improved land of high productiveness, and which he manages with 
great skill and success, making every acre that is under cultivation 
yield an abundant return for the care and labor bestowed upon it 

From 1882 to 1886, inclusive, Mr. Evans was a member of the 
county ,court, and in 1890 was elected to the lower branch of the state 
legislature. He served two years in that body, but was defeated in an 
effort to secure a second term. He has always been a Democrat in his 
political faith, and his allegiance to his party has ever been of the most 
pronounced character. In all its campaigns he has taken an active part 
and rendered its candidates energetic and effective service 

On June 30, 1868, Mr. Evans was united in marriage with Miss 
Nancy Botts, a daughter of Seth and Elizabeth (Littrell) Botts They 
have had seven children, five of whom are living: Edwin E Seth d' 
William B., Walter E. and Adella. Mrs. Evans' father was"a pioneer 
of Lmn county, and died here at the advanced age of eighty-seven 
During the War of 1812 he was a lieutenant in Captain Hamilton's com- 
pany and took part in the battle of New Orleans. 

Mr. Evans is one of the best farmers in Parson Creek township 
and one of its most enterprising and public-spirited citizens. He has 
long been m the van of the forces for improvement, and has been both 
energetic and judicious in his support of undertakings for the advance- 
ment of his township and the whole county. As a public official he made 
a wide reputation for his uprightness and intelligence, and his strict 
attention to the duties devolving upon him in office. In all the relations 
o± Me his course has been upright and commendable, and his example 
to the people around him has been helpful and stimulating. Throughout 
the county he is regarded as one of its best and most representative men. 

OSCAR L. POLSON 

Easy and convenient banking facilities are very desirable in every 
community for the accommodation of the people, and when they are 
provided m ample measure to meet all requirements, and managed with 
a spirit of progressiveness and liberality that takes into consideration 
the power of expansion in the community and the disposition of its 



284 HISTOEY OF LIJsX COUNTY 

people to use that power, they form one of the most potential agencies 
for progress and improvement that can be furnished. When the bank- 
ing arrangements of a town keep pace with its needs they are good. 
But when they lead the march of improvement and quicken and direct 
the public spirit of the town they are of the greatest possible service 
and worthy of all commendation. 

The Farmers State Bank of New Boston, this county, under the 
direction of 0. L. Poison, who has been its cashier since 1908 and its 
organization was in 1905, has been a leader of progress and improvement 
in Baker towusliip, and in its beneficent operations has been of great 
service to the people of the township as a whole, and to many individual 
residents and interests in particular. It has been studious of the needs 
of the township and quick in responsiveness to meet them, and liberal 
in its policy in doing so. 

Mr. Poison is a native of Linn county, Missouri, born on June JL, 
1885. He was reared on his father's farm and obtained a good academic 
and business education, attending first the district schools, then a busi- 
ness college, and finally the State Normal School in Chillicothe. After 
completing the normal course of instruction he taught school two terms, 
one in Adams, Washington county, and one at New Boston. In 1908 
he was elected cashier of the Farmers State Bank, and he has occupied 
that office continuously ever since. . x ,^. 

On December 25, 1910, Mr. Poison was united in marriage with Miss 
Vera Edna Lile, who was born in Macon county on December 3, 1888. 
Her parents, J. Frank and Eliza (Eatliff) Lile, are residents of Macon 
county and living retired at Ethel, Missouri. Fraternally Mr. Poison is 
a member of the Masonic lodge in Bucklin. He has taken a very active 
interest in all matters involving the progress and improvement of his 
township and the welfare of its residents, never withholding his aid 
from any worthy and desirable enterprise which would help to promote 
these objects, and always working for them with intelligence guided by 
good judgment. His practical and fruitful public spirit has been highly 
appreciated by the people, and he is very popular among them, being 
regarded throughout the township as one of its best and most useful 

citizens. 

He is a son of John and Mary (Nelson) Poison, who are both 
natives of Sweden and who came to the United States about the close of 
the rebellion. Both parents are living on a farm north of New Boston 
of 400 acres, well improved. He is a director of the bank and J. Frank 
Lile is president of the same. 



HISTORY OF LINX COUNTY 285 

CITIZENS BANK OF LINNEUS 

The men of nerve and enterprise who .conduct the industries of 
magnitude in and around Linneus, and the citizens of Linn county of 
ordinary means, who conduct their operations on a small scale, are alike 
fortunate in having available for their needs banking facilities ample 
in scope, responsive in action and adapted to specific wants. Such 
facilities are furnished by the banking institutions of Linneus, which 
have come forth from the flame of every financial trial untarnished, and 
have for years maintained, wherever they are known, a high reputation 
for financial soundness, prudent and skillful management, a spirit of 
liberal accommodation and abundant resources for every requirement. 

Among these banking institutions the Citizens Bank of Linneus is 
easily in the front rank. It was founded on January 8, 1905, with a 
capital stock of $30,000, and on a basis so practical and adaptable to 
needs that it has never yet been required to enlarge its capitalization, 
although its business has largely increased, and its operations have 
been magnified to include features not considered at the time of its 
organization. It has kept pace with the progress and development 
of the community, notwithstanding the unexpected demands made upon 
its resources. 

The first official staff of the bank included men of mould, capable 
of dealing with the situation that confronted them, and guiding the new 
institution out into the open sea of large operations and general use- 
fulness. They were: E. Gr. Fetty, president; R. B. Lambert, vice presi- 
dent; Melvin Gibson, cashier, and W. T. Ball, assistant cashier. Judge 
Fetty continued to serve as president until his death in 1909, after 
which H. C. Taggart was chosen to fill his place for a short time. At 
the end of the period for which Mr. Taggart was elected, A. B. Bond was 
made president, and has occupied that office ever since. He is still 
president of the bank, and the other officers are: Marcus B. Fetty, vice 
president; W. P. Thorne, cashier; M. E. Fosher, assistant cashier; and 
A. B. Bond, H. C. Taggart, Dr. J. Gooch, J. L. Kirby, M. B. Fetty, W. P. 
Thorne, T. S. Stephenson, R. B. Lambert and J. P. Fell, directors. 

The bank does a general banking business, including every feature 
of present day banking operations, and has abundant resources for all 
the requirements of its trade, as will be seen in the statement of its 
resources and liabilities to be found at the end of this article. From 
the beginning of its life it has endeavored to be of service to the city 
and county in which it is doing business, and to the people living in 



286 HISTOEY OF LIXN COU^^TY 

them. The measure of its success in carrying out this laudable desire 
is to be inferred from the universal appreciation in which it is held. 

William P. Thorne, the cashier and active manager of the bank, 
and one of the leading and most representative citizens of Linneus, is 
a native of this county, and was born on a farm three miles north of 
Linneus on March 22, 1860. His parents were Samuel and Elender 
(Sutherland) Thorne, the former a native of Kuntucky, born near Lex- 
ington in that state, and the later of Virginia. The father was a farmer 
who came to Linn county in 1840 and stuck his stake and founded his 
home on a tract of wild land, which he improved by his industry and 
enlarged by his enterprise and subsequent purchases until it embraced 
750 acres, all of which he owned at the time of his death in 1903, he 
having survived his third wife, who died in 1900, three years. 

He was married three times. His first wife was a Miss Chaplin, 
who bore him three children, two of whom are now living in this county. 
She died here in 1851. His second marriage was with Miss Elender 
Sutherland, the mother of William P. Thorne. They became the par- 
ents of three sons and two daughters, all of whom are living, and three 
of them reside in Linn county. The third union was with Miss Melissa 
Fore, a native and life-long resident of Linn county. By her marriage 
with Mr. Thorne she became the mother of one son and two daughters, 
all of whom survive her. The family was of English origin on the 
father's side, and its living representatives admirably exemplify the 
best traits of the race from which they are descended. 

William P. Thorne was reared and educated in Linn county, 
Missouri. He was a farmer until 1904, when he was forty-four years 
of age, then became interested in a leading way in the Citizens Bank, 
and from that time to the present has been its manager and controlling 
force. In connection with its affairs he has exhibited business capacity, 
breadth of view and progressiveness of a high order, and contributed 
materially and essentially to its present standing and high rank in the 
estimation of the public. 

On December 3, 1882, he was married to Miss Emma Pratt, a native 
of Linn county, and a daughter of Henry and Ibline (Connelley) Pratt, 
who are recognized as among the leading citizens of the county. Mr. 
and Mrs. Thorne became the parents of three girls, one of whom is liv- 
ing — Effie, who is the wife of 0. W. Croy, discount teller of Tootle- 
Lemon National Bank of St. Joseph, Missouri. Her father has served 
as township trustee and collector, and was, in one campaign, a candi- 
date for the office of county treasurer, but was defeated by a small 
majority. He is a Democrat in political faith and allegiance, an Odd 



HISTORY OF LIXxY COUxYTY 287 

Fellow, Woodman and a Roval Neie]ibor in fnfprn«i Uf^ a 

congregation of the ast mentioned organization to which he belon^T 
nLw':;r:: '' *"^ '''^^'"^ -<J '^^^ ^-asurer of the boarl for'a 



number of years. 



FEEDEEICK L. PITCH 

New EnS'and'faf ,' " ''Z'T'"' "''"' "> '^''^ -'--' "-- i- 
anion^^hS^^^^ 

(cZV^VhT ^ ; ^•. ^'' P**'""*'' I^y-""" M. and Elizabeth 
(Green) ttch, were also natives of the state of New York the forr^er 
born in Delaware county and the latter in Broome county' The fXr 
was a farmer and live stock and dairy man, following the pursuHs indi 
cated for many years in his native state and county! In 189oTe came 

n 190r"Tir,. tr'1- '." ^""T^ ^"^^ ^^''^^ ■- ^-^ untilh dea" 
in 1J08 The mother died in that city in 1900. In the openino- of hi, 

uie age ot tweuty-hve or thirty was given to cultivating the soil raising- 
daughter Al'nft^ V^f '"''' '"'''' *''*' "^■■^"*« "^ ^^'^ ^""^^ and one 

The grandfather, Nathaniel Fitch, was born and reared in Connecti- 
cut. He was a tavern keeper and merchant in that «tate b„rri, 

pre^rtetlZed '" ^f T • ^"™*^' ^^^ ^-'^-^-t ^a ' 
tZre Hi V merchandising in that county, also, and died 

ere. H s oflspring numbered five, two sons and thre; daughters Of 
« e live two are living, one of the sons and one of the daughters 
Thomas Fytche, the founder of the family in this coun r, , i ter 



288 HISTOEY OF LTXX COUNTY 

from England in 1638 and located in Connecticut. He was the ancestor 
of former Governor Fitch of that state. 

Frederick L. Fitch was reared and educated in his native county, 
and for three years after leaving school engaged in farming and 
butchering. In 1887 he came to Missouri and took up his residence in 
Kansas City, and there for a period of six years he was engaged in the 
grocefy and meat trade. In 1893 he moved to Linneus and started a 
meat market in the city and a farming enterprise in the country. In 
1905 he bought the farm he now owns, and on this he has erected the 
most imposing and attractive country dwelling house and other build- 
ings in the county. 

Mr. Fitch has taken a cordial interest in all phases of the general 
life of Linn county since locating here, and has done all he could to 
promote its progress and improvement. No undertaking of value, in 
which the further development of this part of the state or the welfare 
of its residents is involved, ever goes without his active, intelligent and 
serviceable support, and the people esteem him as one of their most 
public-spirited and progressive citizens. He is one of the vice presi- 
dents of the Farmers and Merchants Bank of Linneus and connected 
with other fiscal enterprises of great value to the community. 

Mr. Fitch was married on May 24, 1893, to Miss Mary Williams, a 
daughter of John R. and Carrie (Gibbs) Williams, who have been resi- 
dents of Linn county for fifteen years. No children have been born of 
the union, but the household is not desolate for want of them, as Mr. 
and Mrs. Fitch seem to have adopted the community as an object of 
their special care and solicitude, taking under their wing in a measure 
every good agency at work among its people for their betterment, and 
giving them all intelligent and energetic support. They are well known 
throughout the county, and in all parts of it are looked upon as fruitful 
forces for its good, ornaments to its citizenship, bright stars in its social 
firmament, and most estimable persons in every way. 



ALEXANDER BRINKLEY 

This esteemed citizen and progressive farmer and stock breeder of 
Locust Creek township is regarded on all sides as one of the most ster- 
ling, reliable and useful men in Linn county. In his citizenship he is 
attentive to every requirement for the enduring welfare of the people 
of his township and county. In his farming operations he is up to date 
in theory and methods. In his live stock industry he is one of the lead- 
ers toward the highest and best results; and in every relation of life he 



HISTORY OF LINX COUNTY 289 

is .commendable for liis strict integrity, stern sense of duty and respon- 
siveness to every demand growing out of his relation to the community. 

Mr. Brinkley is not a native of Missouri but has lived in the state 
ever since he was ten years old, a period of fifty-three years. He 
obtained his education in the schools of Linn county, acquired his social 
habits in association with its people, accumulated his estate by industry 
in its activities, and attained his hold on the confidence and esteem of 
the people by taking an active part in public affairs in furtherance of 
their interests. He is therefore in close touch and full sympathy with 
his environment, and a thorough Missourian in everything but birth. 

His life began in Lee county, Iowa, on March 8, 1848, where his 
parents, William B. and Elizabeth Jane (Hamilton) Brinkley, were then 
living and operating a farm. In 1858 they moved to Missouri and took 
up their residence in Linn county on a farm about four miles northwest 
of Linneus. They readily adapted themselves to their new conditions 
and surroundings, and soon became known as among the progressive 
and resourceful farmers and live stock breeders of that portion of the 
county. 

Their son Alexander was educated in the country school near his 
home, and made such good use of his limited opportunities of attending 
it that he was able to become a teacher himself, and for two years ren- 
dered acceptable service to the public in the management of a country 
school, such as had unsealed the fountains of knowledge and mental 
development for him. His pedagogical services were rendered at Botts' 
schoolhouse near Meadville, and, although it is many years since he 
performed them, they are still remembered with appreciation and 
approval by those who were the beneficiaries of them, all of whom agree 
that they were conscientiously given. 

The profession of teaching did not, however, suit Mr. Brinkley 's 
aspirations, and he returned to the pursuit for which he had been 
trained under the exacting tuition of his father. He became a farmer 
and has ever since adhered to that line of effort, coupling with it 
advanced operations in breeding Percheron horses of a high grade. In 
both lines of his undertaking he has been successful in a financial way 
and in making an ex,cellent reputation for himself, both as a farmer and 
a breeder. 

In his political faith and activity Mr. Brinkley is affiliated with the 
Republican party, and while he has never been desirous of a political 
office for himself, either by appointment or election, he has given his 
party energetic and effective service in all its campaigns. He has also 
been cordial and earnest in his interest in the Old Settlers' Association, 



290 HISTORY OF LINN- COUN^TY 

and in 1909 and 1910 served as its president and the controlling force 
in arranging for and conducting its annual reunions for those years. 

Mr. Brinkley united in marriage with Miss Nancy Hannah 
Withrow. Five of the children born to them are living: Dr. F. 0. 
Brinkley, of Stonewall, Louisiana; William P., who is living on the 
home farm; Charles A. and Joseph A., of Seattle, Washington; and 
Milo H., of Poughkeepsie, New York. 



THEODORE A. HANSMANN 

Although born in the neighboring state of Iowa, Theodore A. Hans- 
mann, one of the leading citizens of Bucklin, this county, has been a 
resident of the town of his present activities during nearly the whole of 
his life to the time of this writing (1912). And although he began life 
for himself as a farmer, he has been one of the leading merchants and 
bankers of the same city during the greater part of his manhood. But 
he was trained to mercantile life, for his father was engaged in it 
throughout the whole period of the son's minority, and the latter was 
in constant touch with trade until he reached his maturity. His return 
to it on his own account at an early time in his manhood was neither to 
be wondered at nor unwise, as his success in merchandising fully dem- 
onstrates. 

Mr. Hansmann is a native of Anamosa, Jones county, Iowa, where 
he was born on November 12, 1863. His parents, Herman and Rosalie 
(Isaar) Hansmann, were Germans by nativity. The father was a mer- 
chant in his native land and after his arrival in this country until his 
retirement from all active pursuits. He came to the United States in 
1854 and located first in Minnesota, where he remained three years. In 
1857 he moved the family he then had to Anamosa, Iowa, and there he 
was engaged in business ten years. In 1867 the family came to Bucklin 
to live, and here the father conducted a mercantile establishment eight 
years. At the end of that period he moved to Kinderhook, Pike county, 
Illinois, but in 1878 returned to Bucklin, and has since resided in this 
state, making his home with his children since the death of their mother 
in the spring of 1889, They had three sons and one daughter, but their 
son Theodore is the only one of the four whose home is in Linn county, 
although all the others are living. 

The father, following the custom and law of his native country, 
served for some years in the German army, and took part in the war of 
1848, in which many Germans of subsequent prominence distinguished 
themselves, some of whom afterward suffered expatriation when their 





/^/?yc^-yr^->'z^T^>t^c^j^ 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 391 

cause was lost by the triumph of the other side. Mr. Hansmann, the 
elder, was not of this number, as he came to this country of his own 
accord and not on account of any political prescription against him. 

Theodore A. Hansmann was but three years old when his parents 
first moved to Bucklin. He grew to manhood here and was educated in 
the public schools. After leaving school he engaged in farming until he 
was twenty-six years old. He then gave up that pursuit and moved 
back to Bucklin, where he at once formed a partnership with W. E. 
Story in the hardware trade. Mr. Story died three years later, and 
since then. Mr. Hansmann has successfully and profitably conducted the 
business alone. He has also been president of the Bank of Bucklin for 
some years, and has stood high in business circles from his start in 
mer.chandising. 

On February 15, 1893, he was united in marriage with Miss Agnes 
Sanf ord, a native of Linn county and daughter of Edward Sanford, who 
came to this county in 1868. Four children have been born of the 
union, all of whom are living. They are : Louise E., Carl S., Herman M. 
and Helen M. In politics the father is a Republican, but he has never 
held a political office. He has been a member of the Order of Odd Fel- 
lows continuously for twenty-three years. The mother is a member of 
the Presbyterian church. Both are well known and highlj^ esteemed 
throughout the county, as they have been public-spirited and progres- 
sive in the service of the people and ornaments to Bucklin and Linn 
county citizenship. 



JUDGE WILLIAM H. BROWNLEE 

The death of this venerable and venerated citizen and professional 
/man, whose end came on January 10, 1909, in Brookfield, Linn county, 
of which he had been a mature resident for forty years, prominent in 
his profession and as a banker during the greater part of the time, 
and who was always an ornament to the citizenship of his locality, cast 
the gloom of a heavy bereavement over all classes of the people in this 
county and other parts of the state of Missouri, as he was well known 
and highly esteemed throughout its extent. His remains were laid 
to rest with every demonstration of popular respect and affection, and 
many glowing tributes were paid to his high character, great ability, 
benevolence of disposition and other traits which made him one of the 
most beloved and honored men in the state. 

The action taken at a meeting of the Linn County Bar held on Fri- 
day evening, February 19, 1909, gave, perhaps, the best estimate of his 



292 HISTOEY OF LINX COUNTY 

worth and the causes of the universal esteem bestowed upon him. The 
meeting was called for the purpose of paying homage to the lives and 
chara,cters of the departed jurist and Col. James A. Arbuthnot, 
another distinguished citizen and business man of Linn ,county. 

Maj. A. W. Mullins was made chairman of the meeting, and nearly 
all the lawyers had something to say in the way of tribute to the lives 
of the departed patriots of the bar in consequence of their summons to 
that Higher Court over which the Great Judge presides. At the close 
of the meeting, in which there were so many expressions of beautiful 
thought, the following resolutions were adopted: 

"Since the last term of court in this county, death has visited our 
ranks and has taken from us our revered and beloved brother. Judge 
William H. Brownlee, therefore, be it 

"Resolved, That the Linn County Bar Association and the legal 
profession in this state have lost one of their most distinguished and 
able members; the people have lost a generous, noble and honest man, 
and the family of the deceased a kind and devoted husband and father. 

"His transcendent ability and profound knowledge of the law, his 
wonderful sagacity and intuitive knowledge of human nature, pre- 
eminently fitted him for the most exalted station in private or public 
life, while his uniform kindness of heart to all, and especially to the 
younger and struggling members of the bar, and to the needy and 
oppressed everywhere, made him dear to the hearts of all who knew 
him. 

"That in the death of Judge Brownlee the members of the bar 
have sustained an irreparable personal loss, and while we bow our heads 
in sorrowful submission to the mandate that must surely come to us 
all, yet we will ever cherish in affectionate and grateful remembrance 
the genial, grand, noble character of our departed friend. 

"That we sympathize with his family in their great sorrow. 

"That these resolutions be spread upon the records of this court, 
and that a copy be furnished the family of the deceased, and the press 
of Linn county for publication." 

Judge Brownlee was born in Indiana and admitted to the bar at 
Princeton in that state, having been graduated from the law depart- 
ment of the university at Bloomington about 1855. He practiced his 
profession at Princeton for a short time, then came to Missouri in 
1857, making the journey overland from Champaign, Illinois, where 
he conferred with Abraham Lincoln about the choice of a location. 
He was accompanied by George W. Thompson to Brunswick, Chariton 
county, and from there he traveled on foot to Milan in Sullivan county. 



HISTORY OF LIN^S: COUNTY 293 

where he located a Mexican war land grant given to his father, John 
Brownlee, for his services in an Indiana regiment in our short, sharp 
and decisive contest with our sister republic on the south of us. The 
father was born in Carlisle, Pennsylvania, and served in the War of 
1812 from that state. He died in Indiana in 1855. 

Judge Brownlee began practicing law in this county at Linneus, 
where he was associated with George W. Thompson until about 1868. 
The next year he moved to Brookfield, and here he passed the 
remainder of his days. He had a broad and comprehensive mind, 
which was fully capable of dealing with several lines of activity at the 
same time. And he found an outlet for his surplus energy in the bank- 
ing business, becoming one of the early bankers of Brookfield as the 
successor to T. D. Price & Company, the firm name becoming later Price 
& Brownlee, and still later Price, Brownlee & DeGraw. The judge was 
the first president of the Linn County Bank, and held that position 
until 1893, when he founded the Brownlee Banking Company. 

Judge Brownlee was a Democrat in politics and one of the wisest 
counselors and shrewdest leaders of his party. In 1860 he was elected 
judge of the probate court of Linn county, which office he held until 
1864. Six years later, in 1870, he was elected judge of the court of 
common pleas, and this office he also filled with great credit to himself 
and benefit to the county for a period of four years. At the end of that 
time he declined a re-election, and devoted his attention to his profes- 
sion oft' the bench and his other extensive business operations. 

In summing up his career, as a professional man too much stress 
could scarcely be laid on his extensive, accurate and profound knowl- 
edge of law, his excellent judgment and his great abilitv, fairness and 
eminent qualities in all respects as a judge. He was often called upon 
to act as a special judge in prominent cases, and was very seldom 
reversed by a higher court. He made no pretentions to oratory, how- 
ever, and did not try many cases as an advocate in the courts, his 
greatest value to litigants being as a counselor. But he was as gen- 
erous as he was able and frequently made no charge for giving advice. 
The judge has two sons and two daughters living in Brookfield, 
Where his widow also resides. The two sons, Walter and Eichard, are' 
now carrying on the banking business founded by their father, and so 
long and wisely managed by him. They also are excellent business men, 
and have high rank in the business world and the social and public 
life of their community. They are worthy exemplars of the virtues 
that adorned their father in all the relations of life, and as highly 
esteemed in their wav as he was in his. 



294 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

The virtues of the father were aptly enumerated and described 
in the press of his home city at the time of his death. In a tribute to 
him, full of cordiality and warmth of feeling, the Brookfield Argus said: 

"Those who were familiar with the life and character of William 
H. Brownlee, w^ho have known him as husband, father, neighbor, 
counselor and friend, attest best to the gentleness of his being, the 
kindness of his heart. For years, for three or four decades, he has 
been to legions in this community, adviser and benefactor. It was a 
part of his life to be doing little acts of kindness which he was not 
prone to herald. A thorough optimist, his presence was a sort of bene- 
diction to those with whom he came in contact. Ever of an even tem- 
perament, he was never disposed to retaliate for real or imaginary ills. 
The democracy of heart of Judge Brownlee was as broad as his charity 
for the unfortunate. In manner he was a cavalier, a veritable 'gentle- 
man of the old school,' having acquired the charm of gentility in that 
epoch when men could take time from business to do so. This pioneer 
loved companionship; the association with friends, but, first and fore- 
most, he loved his home. There was his haven, his solace, his restful 
retreat; there was his chief est interest. He belonged to no fraternal 
orders save that of homecraft, to no club save that where wife and 
children dwell. There it was that his influence, his gentleness, his 
kind indulgence, showed forth in a character that will make his memory 
cherished by those who knew him best and loved him most. 

''While this departed pioneer, this distinguished citizen who has 
been gathered in the harvest, applied himself to banking for the past 
thirty years, his ideals were far above those simply of money-getting. 
He looked upon money only as a means to an end, for the comforts, 
the culture, the pleasures it would bring." 

The Brookfield Gazette, commenting on his exact and comprehen- 
sive knowledge of the law and the principles which underlie it, paid 
him this high but just tribute: 

"We once heard one of the ablest lawyers who ever practiced at 
the Linn county bar say that no man who has been engaged in the 
practice of that profession in Linn county had a more thorough and 
broader knowledge of the law, from its basis and elementary principles 
upward, than Judge William H. Brownlee. That he possessed a 
thorough and complete knowledge of the law was fully demonstrated 
while he was judge of the Linn county court of common pleas, as no 
decision made by him was ever reversed by the supreme court." 

These comments of the press admirably epitomize the whole case. 



HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 295 

GEORGE L. JOYCE 

A prominent and influential attorney and counselor at law, and an 
enterprising and wide-awake real estate dealer, and taking an active 
and helpful part in local public affairs, George L. Joyce, of Bucklin, 
this county, is one of the leading citizens and most energetic business 
and professional men in that portion of the county in which he lives, 
and which has the benefit of the principal part of his intelligence and 
legal knowledge in zealous endeavors for his own advancement and 
that of the locality of his home in the promotion of the general welfare. 

Mr. Joyce is a native of Linn county and received a large portion 
of his academic training in its schools. He was born on his father's 
farm four miles east of Linneus on December 6, 1867, and was reared to 
manhood there. After completing the curriculum of the public schools 
in the neighborhood of his home he attended the State Normal School at 
Kirksville for special instruction that would prepare him to teach 
school, and he subsequently pursued a thorough course in training for 
business at the Gem City Business College in Quincy, Blinois. 

After completing his scholastic training in these several lines he 
taught school for a number of years and while doing this also studied 
law. He was admitted to the bar in 1898 and at once began the prac- 
tice of his profession at Bucklin, where he had been superintendent of 
schools for two years. He has since added dealing in real estate and 
loans as a side line to his business, and has prospered in all three 
departments of his work, standing well at the bar and in the estima- 
tion of his professional brethren, and being one of the most enter- 
prising and successful real estate and loan men in his part of the 
county. 

Mr. Joyce is a son of Edward and Lowvicy (Burton) Joyce, the 
former a native of County Cork, Ireland, and the latter of the state 
of Kentucky. The father came to the United States as a young man, 
and on landing in the city of New York soon found employment in 
railroad construction work in New York state. This was in the forties, 
and he made his way westward by gradual stages, working from 
place to place, and finally arriving in Linn county in 1844. Here he 
took up a tract of government land which he improved into a good 
farm, on which he died in 1888. The mother is still living. They 
were married in Blinois and became the parents of fourteen children, 
thirteen of whom, seven sons and six daughters, grew to maturit}^ Of 
these ten are living, and all but one of them are residents of Linn 
county, where the mother also has her home. 



296 HISTORY OF Ll^N COUNTY 

George L. Joyce was married on November 21, 1907, to Miss 
Blanche Pancost, a daughter of Lester E. and Serena Pancost, esteemed 
residents of Chariton county, Missouri, for many years, but now living 
in Marceline. Mr. and Mrs. Joyce have one child, their son Maureece. 
His father has been active in local politics and attained considerable 
influence in public affairs in his township and throughout the county. 
He is a member of the Democrat party, and in all campaigns renders 
it effective service in helping to uphold its principles and aid its candi- 
dates to success in the elections. He is connected in religious ties with 
the Christian .church. He is universally regarded as an excellent citi- 
zen, with high ideals of duty and a cordial and serviceable interest in 
the progress and improvement of his township and county, and at all 
times ready to aid in promoting their welfare and that of their whole 
people. He is a representative man in his community and is accorded 
high rank among its residents. 



CLARENCE M. KENDRICK 

One of the most esteemed and influential citizens of Marceline in 
Linn county is Clarence M. Kendrick, a leading lawyer there, and a 
man of great public spirit in reference to the substantial and enduring 
welfare of his city, county and state in every way. He has shown his 
interest in the progress and improvement of his locality by practical 
service in behalf of its residents, and they appreciate his efforts to 
add to their comfort and enjoyment, as is well known by the high 
standing he has among them and the honors they have bestowed upon 
him. 

Mr. Kendrick was born in Carroll county, Missouri, on January 
29, 1865. His parents, Morton G. and Sarah E. (Wilson) Kendrick, 
were natives of Kentucky. The father was a stone cutter and worked 
at his trade many years in this state. His parents brought him to 
Missouri in 1839, while he was yet in his childhood, and located in 
Clinton county. He attained his manhood in Carroll county, and moved 
to Linn county in 1891, locating at Marceline, where he still resides, 
retired from active pursuits. During the Civil War he was a soldier 
in the Union army, serving four years in the Seventh Missouri Volun- 
teer Cavalry. His regiment took part in the battle of West Point, 
Virginia, in May, 1862, and aided greatly in winning a decisive victory 
for the Union cause. It was also in many other engagements, in all of 
which Mr. Kendrick participated. In the peace and comfort of his 
present life his wife shares fully, as she is still living. Two of their 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 297 

children are also living, their son Clarence M. and their daughter, Mrs 
R C. Webster, who has her home at Braymer in Caldwell county 
this state. 

The great-grandfather of Clarence M. Kendrick was John S. 
Kendnck, who was born in Virginia, moved from there to Kentucky 
and came to Missouri in 1839, locating in Clinton ,county, where he 
died well advanced in years. When the gold excitement over Cali- 
fornia was at its height in 1850, he crossed the plains to that state 
accompanied by his grandson, the father of the interesting subject of 
this brief review. They remained in the gold fields one year, then re- 
turned to Missouri. William Kendrick, the grandfather of Clarence 
also came to Missouri in 1839. For many years he operated a stone 
quarry m Carroll county, where he died. 

Clarence M. Kendrick grew to the age of sixteen in Carroll county 
and secured his academic education in the public schools. He learned 
the printing trade, and after serving his apprenticeship worked at the 
craft eight years, setting type in the leading newspapers of Kansas 
City, St. Joseph and St. Louis. He studied law in Kansas City under 
the direction of John Burgin, and on the suggestion of Judge Clarke 
of that city decided to locate at Marceline. He did this in 1891 and 
was admitted to the bar by Judge Brownlee in 1892. He began prac- 
ticing the same year in Marceline, and that city has been his home 
ever since. -^iSfeJ 

From 1893 to 1902 Mr. Kendrick was editor of The Mirror \n 
Marceline, and he has also served fourteen years as city attorney. 
He was elected to the state legislature in 1900, and there he served one 
term with credit to himself and benefit to Linn countv and the state of 
Missouri. Fraternally he is a Knight Templar and a Scottish Rite 
Freemason of the thirty-second degree, and also belongs to the Order 
of Knights of Pythias. He has a large practice in his profession, is 
an orator of note on the hustings and at the bar, and is held in high 
regard for his pronounced and effective public spirit, which has helped 
to bring about many valuable improvements in the city and township 
of Marceline. In this line of activity he has been conspicuous in his 
enterprise in helping to push forward the paving of the city streets, 
providing the community with an abundant supply of good water and 
establishing the City park, which is a source of great pride and pleas- 
ure to everybody living in the township. In fact, there is no manner 
in which the interests of the people of his locality can be advanced as 
to which he is not far-seeing and energetic, doing great work himself 
and stimulating others to action by his influence and the force of his 



298 HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 

impressive example. He is essentially a builder of progress, and every 
commendation bestowed upon Mm as such and as a citizen has been 
justly and fully deserved. 



IRVIN OGAN 

(Deceased) 



The mastery of Man over Nature, in all its phases, is an inspiring 
theme, which, because of its familiarity, often loses its force. Readily 
enough we perceive and acknowledge the grandeur of the great army 
which some chief or despot assembles and draws out to feed his vanity 
by display or his ambition by conquest; but the larger and nobler 
armies, whose weapons are the ax, the mattox and the spade, which 
overspread the hills and line the valleys, until through their rugged 
skill and persevering efforts a highway of commerce is opened where 
late the panther leaped, the deer disported — is not theirs the nobler 
spectacle — more worthy the orator's apostrophe, the poet's song? 
Consider the irregular but persistent advance of the pioneers of civil- 
ization in our country! Onward, still onward, they have swept, and 
still before them have bowed and vanished all obstructions to their 
progress! In the eye of a true discernment, what host of Xerxes or 
Caesar, of Frederick or Napoleon, ever equaled this in majesty, in 
greatness of conquest, or in true glory? It opened up America to 
settlement and productiveness, and made our country what it has becL 
aptly called "The last great charity of God to the human race." 

One of the advance guard, if not a division commander, in this 
mighty army of peaceful conquest was Irvin Ogan, the first per- 
manent settler in what is now Clay township, Linn county, Missouri. 
He and his wife, whose maiden name was Rebecca Jones, and who 
were both born in Mason county, Kentucky, came to Linn county 
from Boone county, this state, in 1835, and located on a tract of wild 
land in Parson Creek township. The next year, however, they moved 
to Clay township and the husband took up from the government a 
tract of land in Section 13, Township 58, Range 22, which is within the 
presents limits of Clay township, and is occupied and farmed by their 
daughter and son-in-law, Mr. and Mrs. William W. Sidebottom, a 
sketch of whom is published in this history. 

They cleared this land and brought it to a fair state of productive- 
ness during their lives, the remainder of which was passed on it as 
their home. The mother died on this farm on January 28, 1882, and 
the father in 1887. He was a man of considerable prominence and 



HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 299 

influence in the early history of Linn county, serving its people in a 
number of township and county offices and finally representing its 
residents in the state legislature in 1840. He declined a second nom- 
ination. On one occasion when he was a candidate for the office of 
justice of the peace in Parson Creek township he received every vote 
that Avas polled for this office in the township. 

Mr. Ogan was one of the renowned hunters of his day in this 
locality, but while he had a large score of trophies of the chase to the 
credit of his steady hand and unerring eye, he was also very service- 
able in ridding his towmship of wolves which made it almost impossi- 
ble for any of the settlers to raise lambs or pigs, so numerous and vora- 
cious were these predatory beasts of prey. He and his brother James, 
who was also a Nimrod of the greatest repute, killed about one hun- 
dred of them and by this means gave the herds and flocks of the 
pioneers in the locality comparative safety. They also brought down 
deer and wild turkeys without number, and frequently carried home 
the carcass of a bear to replenish the larders of the settlement, while 
they added to the adornment and comfort of their cabins with the 
pelts. There is a tradition in the township, too, to the effect that no 
fox Jiowever old and wary, was too cunning for their skill. 

The Ogan brothers aided very materially in founding the civil, 
educational and social institutions of Clay township, and had potential 
influence with reference to such things in all parts of the county. They 
were also of great service in starting the industrial activities of the 
region and making the required preparations for their further develop- 
ment and expansion. In every phase and form of the life of this part 
of the state they took an active part, and their wisdom and breadth 
of view were important factors in starting progress on right lines 
and toward the most wholesome improvement and desirable ends. 
The people of Linn county hold their names in sincere veneration, 
appreciate their services as of great value and point to the examples 
of elevated and progressive citizenship which their records furnish 
as worth V of all emulation. 



JUDGE A. B. BOND 

For more than fifty-three years this eminent citizen of Linn county 
has lived within its limits, taken part in its industries, helped to ad- 
minister its public affairs at different times and in various capacities, 
adorned its social and civil life, and in every way open to him helped 
to promote its progress and development. He came to the county as 



300 HISTORY OF LINIS^ COTJN"TY 

a boy of twelve, and has lived here ever since, and from the time when 
he left school has been industriously and profitably engaged in farm- 
ing. He has proven himself worthy of the highest esteem in public 
and private life, and the people of the county hold him in the estima- 
tion he has shown he deserves, and they do this in all parts of the 
county. 

Judge Bond was born in Harrison county, Virginia, now West 
Virginia, in 1847, and in 1859 accompanied his parents to Missouri 
and Linn county in their long, wearying and oftentimes dangerous 
journey across the country with wagon teams. He is a son of Peter 
and Elizabeth (Peyton) Bond, also natives of Virginia, as it was when 
they were born, undismembered as yet by the keen edge of the sword 
of civil war. The father was a planter in the "Old Dominion," and 
a farmer after his arrival in Missouri. He located on a tract of un- 
broken wild land north of Brookfield, which he broke up and trans- 
formed into a fine farm. He sold this in 1864 and moved to where the 
town of Purdin now stands. There the mother died in 1889 and he in 
1891. They had two sons, both of whom are living. 

The father was a Democrat of pronounced convictions and firm 
faith in the principles of his party. He was prominent in its councils 
in his native state and rose to a position of leadership in it in this 
county. He was also one of the most prominent and zealous members 
of the Methodist Episcopal Church South in this part of the country. 
His father, Levi Bond, grandfather of the judge, was also a native of 
Virginia and a planter in that state, and died there at a good old age. 
He was of Scotch ancestry, and in his life and achievements manifested 
many of the salient characteristics of the remarkable race from which 
he sprang. 

Judge A. B. Bond grew to manhood in this county and obtained 
his education in the primitive schools of his boyhood, which were 
conducted in houses rudely constructed of logs and furnished with 
slab benches. They lacked scope and equipment, and their methods 
of teaching were far behind those of the present day. But they were 
veritable temples, and in them Liberty received her purest worship, 
and through them, also, though in humble and lowly guise, she secretly 
breathed her strength into the heart and sinews of the nation. 

While attending school and after completing his education accord- 
ing to the facilities he could command, the judge worked on his 
father's farm until he attained his majority. He then began farming 
on his own account, and he followed this occupation steadfastly and 
with increasing prosperity until a few years ago, when he retired to 



HISTOEY OF LINX COUNTY 301 

some extent from all active pursuits, although he is still connected 
with the management of his fine farm of 350 acres. This was wild 
land, virgin to the plow, when he took possession of it. He cleared it, 
broke it up and reduced it to systematic productiveness, and he also 
improved it with good buildings, making it one of the choice country 
homes of the township in which it lies. 

On December 6, 1871, Judge Bond was united in marriage with 
Miss Hester Schrock, a daughter of Isaac and Charlott Elizabeth 
(Burns) Schrock, long highly respected residents of Sullivan county, 
where the marriage was solemnized. Mrs. Bond is still living, but no 
children have been born in the household. She is a lady of force and 
breadth of view, and held in high esteem as one of the most service- 
able and influential matrons of the community in which she lives 
although altogether modest and unassuming in her demeanor, and 
shrinking from prominence of any kind. 

The judge has served in various local offices, and in 1908 was 
elected to the one that gave him his title. In that year he was chosen 
county judge, but at the end of his term he retired from further public 
service. He is president of the Citizens Bank of Linneus, and director 
of the Bank of Purdin, of which he was one of the founders. He is 
also one of the directors of the Purdin Mercantile Company. He and 
his wife are valued members of the Methodist Episcopal Church South 
and active in all its good works. No citizen of Linn county is more 
highly esteemed, and none deserves to be. 



WILLIAM W. SIDEBOTTOM 

The patronymic of this enterprising, progressive and successful 
farmer of Clay township, Linn county, runs like a veritable thread of 
gold through the early chronicles of this part of Missouri, and wher- 
ever it appears speaks credit for itself and benefit for the region. It 
is connected in a leading way with every phase of the life of this sec- 
tion, religious, civil, social and industrial, and dignifies and adorns 
them all. The founder and patriarch of the family in this part of the 
country was Rev. Eobinson E. Sidebottom, the history of whose life 
is given in a sketch of his son Eugene Sidebottom to' be found else- 
where in this work. 

AVilliam W. Sidebottom was born in Madison county, Kentucky, 
on January 1, 1849, and brought to Missouri by his parents in 1857, 
when he was but six years old. From that time to the present (1912) 
he has been continuously a resident of Linn county, where his brothers, 



302 HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 

Eugene and James H. Sidebottom, whose life stories are recorded on 
other pages of this volume, have also long been residents. He was 
educated in the schools of his boyhood, which were housed in log 
structures rudely furnished with slab benches and wanting in almost 
all the other sources of physical comfort, as they were in everything 
in the way of instruction beyond the elementary branches of learning. 

Mr. Sidebottom assisted his father and brothers in breaking up 
the wild land on which the family located on their arrival in the 
county, remaining at home with his parents until he reached the age 
of twenty-seven. This was in 1876, and the next year he w^as married 
to Miss Mary J. Ogan, a daughter of Irvin and Rebecca (Jones) Ogan, 
the earliest settlers in Clay township, who came to Linn from Boone 
county in 1835 and located on a tract of land in Parson Creek town- 
ship, from which they moved the next year to the land which is now 
owned, occupied and cultivated by their son-in-law and his wife. A 
brief account of their lives appears elsewhere in this history, and 
shows their early connection with the affairs of the county. 

After his marriage Mr. Sidebottom moved to his present farm, 
and to the improvement and further development of this he has ever 
since given his attention in an energetic and thoughtful way, studying 
its needs, observing its manifestations, heeding its suggestions, and 
making the most of its possibilities in every direction. He has also 
given some care to breeding and feeding live stock for the markets, 
and while he has carried on this branch of his business on a small 
scale, he has so ordered it that he has made its products creditable 
to himself and his township and its operation profitable to a very 
gratifying degree. 

Mr. and Mrs. Sidebottom have two children living, their daughter 
Willie Esther, who is the wife of E. V. Wilkinson of Livingston 
county, and their son Lawrence E., who is a resident of Linn county, 
and one of its most highly respected citizens. The parents are mem- 
bers of the Methodist Episcopal Church, and the children also lean 
to that denomination. All the members of the family are recognized 
as persons of high character, upright living and productive public 
spirit. They take great interest in the progress and improvement of 
their several communities, and do everything in their power to ad- 
vance the welfare of their residents. 

In political relations Mr. Sidebottom is a Republican with firm 
faith in the principles of his party, but he has never been an active 
partisan, and has never held or sought a political office of any kind. 
He serves the state well and wisely in his industries and in the faith- 



HISTORY OF LIA^N COUNTY ^03 



0. E. KELLEY 

This gentleman has a special interest in the welfare of Linn 
county Missouri, and by his sturdy and serviceable devotion to the 

«" andtii?r t'" T'^!^,'"--'^ 0- «f tl^e — ty's most subst n! 
tidl and high y esteemed citizens. His special interest in the countv 
arises from his having been born in it and reared and educat d Zng 
its residents, and in part also from his having been from his voutb 
engaged in the leading industry of the locality of his home Ts a ynT^ll 

His life began in Yellow Creek township on Februarv " 18fil' 
and his father, B. A. Kelley, was also a native of Missouri bonUn 

w:s Sv mt "" ''"'tT '' ''''■ "'^ '^°'''^'' -'^"^ -aiden ,1 m' 
was Mary White was not, however, a Missourian by nativity, but was 

born m Albemarle county, Virginia, on March 10, 1839. They w^re 

prosperous farmers and their son, C. E. Kelley, was reared on the 

birth hT' U *"1 r""" i •• *° "'^^'"^ "^'^ P^-"t^ -»-d prior t hi 
biith. He obtained his education in the country school near the farm 
and a^ soon as he was able began farming for himself 

Mr. Ivelley's grandparents were Francis and Mary (Pace) Kellev 
who were born and reared in the vicinity of Frankfor , Kentucky and 

Uve;1n*«i f :::r %r T- '^*^' ^^^^^'-^^ "^^ rem'ainder o/'their 
lives m this state. They, also, were farmers, and persons of nrom 

mence ,n the community in which they lived, t is t! erefoTe not toTe 

wondered at that the subject of this brief memoir should "el very 

warm attachment to Missouri, since his family have lived h tt and 

^:^. """^ '''' ''-''■ ^"■-'""' '-- "^ fruitful :i v^ 

C E. Kelley took to farming naturally, and he has never pursued 

any other occupation except for a time to render the countv e^celent 

erviee as county treasurer for two terms extending from 18% o 

Democrattd tat '" ''T- .^' ''^'"^ ^'"'^•^•^ ^'^ ->-«- ^^^ 
i^emoerat and taken great interest in the success of his partv he was 

also Its candidate for judge of the eastern district of Ms cciuim" 
trict' <'\\ T'' ^ "" P'-'^P^^d^ance of the other partv i, the di's 
tnct a the time, he was not successful in the election This however' 
did not dampen his political ardor or render him less acHvoin v' 
">g to promote the welfare of his party and thrtriumpTof it^ ^ 



304 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

ciples and candidates, for which he has continued to work through 
all the subsequent years of his life. A few years after the time of 
his candidacy for judge he was nominated for the lower house of the 
state legislature, but was again defeated, George W. Martin of Brook- 
field being chosen over him at the election after a very spirited 
campaign. 

In fraternal relations Mr. Kelley is connected with the Order of 
Odd Fellows and that of Modern Woodmen of America. He has also 
been for over thirty years a member of the New Garden Baptist 
Church in his township, and been one of its trustees for a long time. 
His devotion to his church and church work has been very strong and 
his zeal in behalf of the congregation to which he belongs has been 
fervent and effective, giving him high standing in the church as one 
of its most useful and estimable members, always ready for any duty 
he can perform or any service he can render for the good of the cause 
of religion in general and his own sect in particular, counting no effort 
on his part too great if it brings results. 

Mr. Kelley was married on August 1, 1883, to Miss Lily D. Ridg- 
way, a daughter of George W. and Melinda (Hardy) Eidgway, and the 
granddaughter of Thomas and Sally B. (Ridgway), natives of Ken- 
tucky and early arrivals in Missouri, locating in Linn county after a 
short residence in Howard county. Mr. and Mrs. Kelley have five 
children living and five grandchildren. The children are: Floella, the 
wife of M. D. Coster, who has one child ; Harry E., who is married and 
has three children; Leslie G., who is also married and has one child; 
Gladys, who is the wife of F. W, Maddox; and Gilbert, who is still 
living at home with his parents. All the members of the family are 
highly respected for their genuine worth, the elevated tone of their citi- 
zenship and their upright and useful lives. The people everywhere who 
know them esteem them cordially as representatives of the most sturdy 
and sterling manhood and womanhood of the county in which their 
j^ears have passed to the present time. 



CHARLES R. BURRIS 

Nearly two-thirds of the years the interesting subject of this 
brief memoir has lived have been passed in Linn county and on the 
farm which is now his home. He came to it with his parents when he 
was fifteen years old and has never known any other home except six 
years spent in Oklahoma since then. From it he completed his educa- 
tion at the neighborhood school; on it he finished his training as a 



HISTORY OF LIXX COUNTY 305 

farmer; here lie attained his majority and began his life work as a 
tiller of the soil; and here, also, he has continued his operations as such 
to the present time. His life on this farm has been an open, industrious 
and faithful one before the people, and has brought him their good 
opinion as a farmer and their esteem as a citizen. The residents of 
Clay township know him well and have naught but good words to say 
of him in every relation of life. 

Mr. Burris was born on October 17, 1863, in Boone county, Indiana 
and IS a son of Robert T. and Louisa A. (Caldwell) Burris, also natives 
of that state. The father's life began in Boone county, that state, in 
183o and he was reared and educated there. There he was married 
also, and there he farmed until 1878, when he moved his family to Linn 
county and located on the farm now occupied by his son Charles. He 
erected all the buildings and made all the other improvements on the 
place, and lived on it and at Meadville and in Linneus until his death 
which occurred in January, 1911, moving off when he retired from 
active pursuits. 

During the Civil War he was a soldier in the Union armv in the 
Seventy-second Indiana and Forty-fourth Indiana, for two years His 
regiment was a part of the mounted infantry, and he was in the portion 
of It detailed to scout duty. He also saw considerable active service in 
the field, and met every call to duty with ready responsiveness, a spirit 
of genuine courage and a willingness to face whatever was before him 
without regard to consequences. The mother is still living They 
were the parents of four sons and three daughters, all now deceased 
but their sons Charles and Elmer. The father was a leading member 
of the Presbyterian church and an elder for a number of years in the 
congregation to which he belonged, and which he rendered faithful 
service. 

The grandfather, Thomas M. Burris, was born and reared in Ken- 
tucky, and in his young manhood moved to Boone countv, Indiana 
where he was a pioneer. In that county he took up a tract' of govern- 
ment land on which he passed the remainder of his life, improving it 
into an attractive and valuable farm, on which he died at a good old 
age, standing well in his community and enjoving the regard and good 
will of all its people. He and his wife had eight children, four sons and 
f our daugliters, two of the eight being still alive. He was a blacksmith 
and tanner, and a scion of families long domesticated in Scotland 

Charles R. Burris lived to the age of fifteen in his native county 
and began his education in its public schools. He came with his parents 
to Lmn county in 1878, as has been noted, and remained at home until 



306 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

lie reached the age of twenty-three, assisting in the work on the farm. 
He then taught school four years, at the end of which he returned to 
the farm, on which he has been settled ever since. For five years he 
also conducted a meat market in Linneus. 

On August 12, 1886, he was united in marriage with Miss Emma J. 
"Withrow, a daughter of James Withrow, one of the pioneers of Linn 
county and for a number of years county surveyor. By this marriage 
Mr. Burris became the father of two children, one died in infancy, and 
his daughter Bessie, who is now the wife of T. E. Proctor of Gage, 
Oklahoma. Her mother died in 1891, and in 1894 the father married 
a second wife, joining himself with Miss Sadie E. Boone, a native of 
Missouri. Her parents came to Linn county in 1866. Of this marriage 
one child has been born, Lillian Euth Burris, who is still living at home 
with her parents. 

Mr. Burris is an Odd Fellow and a Knight of Pythias, and his 
religious connection is with the Presbyterian church. Although mod- 
est and undemonstrative by nature and in manner, he has been a man 
of force and influence in his township because he has shown genuine 
worth and manifested a cordial, intelligent and helpful interest in its 
progress and improvement and the enduring welfare of its people. He 
has always been a warm supporter of projects undertaken for the 
promotion of its advancement or the accomplishment of any good pur- 
pose. No man in the township is more highly esteemed, and none 
deserves to be. 



JOHN F. WOOD 



With 640 acres of good farming land, well improved and under an 
advanced state of cultivation, and conducting in connection with his 
farming operations a flourishing live stock business, John F. Wood 
of Clay township is one of the most prosperous and progressive men 
in this part of the county of Linn, and stands well among the people 
as a leading and very serviceable citizen. His industries are valuable 
to the township and county of his residence, and his attention to all 
public interests is always zealous and productive of good. 

Mr. Wood was born in Appanoose county, Iowa, on December 5, 
1861, and is a son of John and Augusta (Woodward) Wood, both born 
and reared in Indiana. The father was a farmer during the greater 
part of his life, but he enlisted in the army for the Mexican War and 
went through that short, sharp and highly beneficial conflict. He joined 
a company raised in Indiana and followed the flag of his country from 
the beginning to the end of the war, taking part in several of its bat- 



HJ STORY OF LINN COUNTY 307 

ties, and receiving a wound at that of Vera Cruz, which disabled him 
for the service for a time. But when he recovered he re-enlisted and 
was in at the death, entering the city of Mexico with the triumphant 
army of General Scott. 

He moved to Iowa in the early fifties and located government land 
with the warrant he secured for his services in the war, choosing a 
tract on Soap creek near where the town of Moulton now stands, and 
there for a number of years he operated a saw mill. In 1864 he came 
to Linn county and took up his residence on a farm in Jackson town- 
ship, where he died in 1908, and his wife in 1897. They had four sons 
and four daughters, and of the eight three of the sons and one of the 
daughters are living. The father was a great rifle shot and hunter, and 
kept his larder stored with the fruits of his skill. For wild game was 
abundant in the county at the time of his location in it, and he knew 
as well as anybody where to find it and how to get it. He was also a 
devout and faithful member of the Methodist Episcopal church, and 
always attentive to his duties as such. 

The grandfather, James Wood, moved to Indiana from Kentucky, 
and his wife, Priscilla Wood, was near the Pigeon Roost Indian raid 
when it occurred in the latter state. Her remains are buried in Linn 
county. She and her husband were valued pioneers in at least two 
states and saw a great deal of the hardships and dangers of frontier 
life in each of them. But they were of heroic mold and bore all the 
trials of their lives with commendable courage and fortitude. 

John F. Wood was reared to manhood in Linn county and obtained 
his education in its public schools, he being but three years old when 
the family moved to this county. He began life for himself as a hired 
man, but soon afterward changed his residence to Arizona, where for 
six years he was engaged in mining and the cattle industry, and did 
much in operating pack trains in that part of the country. In 1880 
he returned to Linn county, and here he has lived ever since. As 
has been noted his farm comprises 640 acres, and he handles live stock 
on a large scale, raising mostly cattle and hogs, conducting every 
department of his business with great enterprise and success and mak- 
ing them all profitable to him. 

Mr. Wood was married on April 12, 1891, to Miss Emma B. Powell, 
a daughter of Andrew Powell, a pioneer of Linn county who settled 
here about 1840, coming to the county from Boone county, Missouri, 
but being a Virginian by nativity. Mr. and Mrs. Wood have six chil- 
dren: Walter A., George W., Ethel S., Bertha G., Augusta M. and 
Julius F. Their mother died on December 25, 1910. She was a mem- 



308 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

ber of the Presbyterian churcli, while he belongs to the Methodist 
Episcopal denomination. 

In his political faith and allegiance Mr. Wood is a member of the 
Democratic party, and is loyal to his convictions in reference to public 
affairs. He has not been a very active partisan, and has not sought 
any public offices, but he has served as school director for a number of 
years. In the progress and improvement of his township and county 
he is always warmly and practically interested, aiding in the promotion 
of all worthy undertakings involving the welfare of the people. He is 
well known all over the county, and in all parts of it stands well in the 
regard and good will of its residents, who look upon him as one of the 
county's most enterprising and estimable citizens. 



JOSEPH A. PERRY 

This prominent and prosperous farmer of Clay township is a 
native of Linn county and has passed the whole of his life to the present 
time (1912) within its borders. He was born in Jackson township on 
December 9, 1870, was reared and educated in the county, married here 
and has been engaged in farming from his youth. So that all he is is a 
product of Linn county, all his interests have grown and flourished 
on its soil, it is the shrine of his domestic life, and everything promotive 
of its welfare has been an object of solicitude to him and enlisted his 
earnest and effective aid. 

Mr. Perry is a son of Henry C. and Surepta (Smith) Perry, the 
former a native of Audrain county and the latter of Linn county in this 
state. The father was born in 1844 and brought to Linn county by his 
parents in his childhood. He grew to manhood in this county and 
obtained his education here. In November, 1861, when he was but 
seventeen years old, he enlisted in the Union army, being enrolled in 
Company F, Twenty-third Missouri Volunteer Infantry, under Captain 
Ein Morris, under whose command he served until he received his dis- 
charge in December, 1864, in Savannah, Georgia, after three years of 
very active and exciting service. 

He participated in the battle of Shiloh and was taken prisoner 
there. For a short time afterward he suffered all the horrors of 
Andersonville prison, and while confined in that awful place his weight 
went down to ninety pounds. But he was soon exchanged and again in 
active field service, taking part in the great battles of Chickamauga 
and Missionary Ridge. After that he went with Sherman to the sea 
and had a share in all the engagements of that memorable and waste- 



HISTOEY OF LIi\N COUNTY 305, 

ful expedition. He was also in tlie battle of the Wilderness whel 

After his discharge from the military service he retnrnorl t„ T • 
county and farmed here until his death/whicroccurred [„ 190^ T 
and his wife were the parents of four so^s and fordaui eil Thrt 

ifriid": n^rer;: 'Tiz'-' '-'-''■ -' ^" ^^^ « '«^« 

-ny years, and wLrCa dlvo^^temhTo? tCtpHst'rhrr H^ 
v;,. J'-" S™"5^"'"-' olios'' "ame was also Joseph A. Perry was « 

He married with Miss Harripf Tall^.^ qi. i ^ountj m l«a. 

and met her deatlHr. i / ^* • "^ "^^^ ^^™ "' Audrain conntv 
of a v^n i"^^^^^ ' ^"^^^^' "^^^^ ^^ 1^^^^' ^ -^ --^ -^clen ending 

ii.- ^^!- ^'^^''^^^^^'^'^ ^1«^ served during the Civil War in the Twpnfv 
third Missouri Volunteer Infanfrv ha^T.c. • ^i / Iwenty- 

lortune m the s-old fiplrlc ^f Poi,-^? • -, ^-^^^^^i^^ m seaicn ot 

number of yearf California, and remained in that state a 

Linnt"nttirhTs''bfe'r '/T^f "*' '^''^'"" °' ""'^ '•''-^-- "- '"-d ™ 
1896 mL Nellie W i'' . ^'7'^ """""^"^ '" *'"•' """"t^^ - 

(Marple)^^lsr"^sl;- S^ L rbtrbl^oTrunr tntf 

tax collector for ^i^;^^^J^::i^^^iz::z:^ct 

number of years. In religious affiliation he is a Bapt st ai d ,t wif 
belongs to the Methodist Episcopal church P,»f„ i , ^^ 

W of the Order of Odd FelLTLTid t tode™ t .In^n':/!"" 
He represents the third generation of his family that has Hved irLinn 



310 HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 

county and labored for its growth and development, for all its civil 
institutions and the best interests of its people in every way. The 
record of the family is an honorable one in all respects, and the people 
of the county have paid its members in their day and generation the 
tribute of respect that is always due to genuine worth, elevated citizen- 
ship and useful service. 



HENRY TOOEY 



Called from the scenes of his earthly labors at the early age of 
fifty-two years, when all his faculties were in full power and usefulness 
and all his plans for his own advancement and the good of the people 
around him were moving forward in steady and fruitful triumph, the 
late Henry Tooey left the whole city of Brookfield and county of Linn 
to mourn their loss in his untimely death, and dazed by the suddenness 
of the dispensation of Providence which called him to the higher life. 
He died of pneumonia on Monday morning, April 24, 1911, after an 
illness of only four days. 

It is a pleasing though melancholy task to place on record in a 
permanent form a brief account of his career while the recollection of 
its trials and conquests is still fresh in the public mind, and to pay 
tribute to his character, citizenship and achievements, which are a 
source of comfort to his surviving friends and of inspiration to those 
who are struggling after him, in whose memory they still linger with 
a celestial fragrance and an influence productive of good in many ways. 

Mr. Tooey was born at Thayer, Linn county, Missouri, on January 
19, 1859, and was a son of Patrick and Bridget (Dixon) Tooey, the 
former a native of County Mayo, Ireland, born in 1823. The father 
came to the United States in 1839 with his parents and brother and 
sister. The family located at Mount Morris, Livingston county, New 
York, and there the youth of sixteen grcAv to manhood and supple- 
mented in the public schools the scholastic training he had received 
in his native land. 

He did not linger long at the schoolroom form, however. He saw 
the great world before him with urgent claims on his time and ability, 
and became eager-hearted to be ''in among the throngs of men" and 
bear a hand in their great work of accomplishment and development. 
At an early age he began contracting in construction work, and also 
kept a hotel in Buffalo, New York. Later he followed boating on the 
great lakes and the New York canals for a time, making a success of 
everything he undertook. 



HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 311 

One of Ms first contracts was on the Genesee Valley canal, to the 
building of which he made material and appreciated contributions. 
Afterward he secured large contracts on the Erie Railroad and for 
widening the Welland canal. By the time he completed these he heard 
the voice of the Great West proclaiming its need of men of his caliber, 
and he hearkened to the plea. Coming West, he took large contracts 
m the construction of the Ohio & Missouri Railroad in Illinois. In 
1856 he built twenty-one miles of railroad in Callaway county, Missouri. 
Within the same year he located in Linn county and founded the 
old town of Thayer. About this time he also completed thirteen miles 
of the Hannibal & St. Joseph Railroad. In addition to these varied 
and exacting engagements, he conducted a large general store and was 
occupied in freighting from Brunswick and points in Macon county. 
His business was extensive and had many features in its wide variety. 
But he gave every department of it close and careful attention, and 
made it all tell greatly to his advantage. 

During his residence in New York state he was united in marriage 
with Miss Bridget Dixon, and by this marriage they became the parents 
of nine children, three of whom are living: Gus, a resident of Brook- 
field; Stephen, who lives in St. Joseph, and Mrs. Kate Griffin, whose 
home is in Kansas City, Missouri. The mother died in 1866 and the 
father in May, 1899. He was a Catholic in religion, a Democrat in 
political faith and action, a genial, companionable and stimulating man 
m social life, and is yet well remembered as one of the best and most 
useful citizens of the county and held in high esteem for his valuable 
services to the people wherever he lived and labored for the general 
welfare. 

^ ^ Henry Tooey was reared in this county and obtained his education 
m its public schools. His scholastic opportunities were, however, very 
limited, as at a very early age he began the battle of life for himself 
as a clerk and salesman for his uncle, James Tooey, whom he served 
with fidelity and ability for several years. His mother died when he 
was but seven years of age, and when he was fourteen he located at 
Brookfield, where he soon secured employment in the store of H. 
Emanuel & Company, thus following his natural bent, which was 
toward mercantile life, and for this he had such decided talent that he 
rose rapidly in its domain toward the first rank. It was manifest 
early in his career that he was a born merchant and possessed real 
genius for his chosen occupation. In the course of a few years he 
became the practical head and real guiding spirit of the establishment 
he had entered at the bottom of the ladder, and soon afterward became 



313 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

a member of the firm of Hartman & Tooey, of which Mr. S. P. Hartman 
was the nominal head but Mr. Tooey was the inspiring and directing 
force. 

This is in brief the outline of the career of this fine specimen of 
Missouri manhood and business enterprise. Of the struggles and diffi- 
culties involved in that career; the obstacles in the way of the aspiring 
young man and his mastery over them; his wealth of resources for 
every requirement and readiness for all emergencies, and the substan- 
tial triumph he won over every obstruction to his progress, the com- 
munity which witnessed his labors and shared in their benefits need 
not be told. Neither need its people be reminded of the uprightness 
of his private life, his strict integrity in business, his quick and respon- 
sive enterprise in reference to all matters involving the enduring wel- 
fare of the city and county of his home, or the obliging disposition, 
the courtesy, the grace and the consideration for others which dis- 
tinguished him in social life. 

The record of their esteemed citizen and leading merchant is an 
open book before them, and they are familiar with every paragraph 
inscribed on its pages. How well they knew him and how highly they 
regarded him was well shown by their grief over his early death and 
the universal honor bestowed upon him at the burial of his remains. 
He had no political ambition for himself, but was a devoted member 
of the Democratic party and zealous at all times for its welfare. In 
fraternal life he belonged to the Knights of Columbus and the Order 
of Elks, and in religious faith and practice he was a firm and consistent 
Catholic. 

Mr. Tooey was married in 1887 to Miss Hattie Eider, a daughter 
of the late C. P. and Julia (Austin) Eider. The fruit of the union 
was one child their daughter Josephine, who with her mother, survives 
the father and has her home in Brookfield. The wife and daughter 
are among the most esteemed residents of the city, and they all are 
richly deserving of the regard and good will in which they are held 
by all classes of the people in the city. They are faithful to every duty, 
as was the head of the house during his life, and like him, they dis- 
seminate genial sunshine and the force of a good example in each case 
all around them. 



HIRAM K. BARGAR. 

For the full period of forty-seven years Hiram K. Bargar, 
president of the Peoples Bank of Meadville, has been a resident of 
Linn county and one of the forceful factors in the aggregate of its 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 313 

productive potencies. He came to the county a young man twenty 
years of age, and during tlie next thirty-seven years was energetically 
and profitably engaged in farming on a tract of land he took up from 
the government in its state of primeval wildness, and which by indus- 
try and steady application he transformed into one of the best farms 
in Parson Creek township. 

Mr. Bargar is a native of Harrison county, Ohio, born on January 
21, 1845. He is a son of John and Eliza (Gatchell) Bargar, natives 
of Chester county, Pennsylvania, and a brother of Henry C. Bargar, 
in a sketch of whom, on another page of this volume, the family his- 
tory is briefly told. While he was yet quite young the family moved 
to Tuscarawas county, Ohio, and there he grew to manhood and ob- 
tained his education, attending the country school near his home for 
the purpose. 

After leaving school Mr. Bargar farmed in Tuscarawas county 
until 1865, then, in December of that year, came with his brother 
Jacob to Missouri. The brothers located in Linn county and bought a 
.considerable tract of wild land, which they farmed together for six 
years. At the end of that time they divided the land, and each still 
owns the part he took at the division. Until ten years ago Hiram was 
engaged in general farming and breeding Shorthorn cattle. In 1902 
he retired from farming and moved to Meadville, where he has ever 
since had his home. 

Mr. Bargar was married in 1868 to Miss Esther Sproull, also a 
native of Ohio. They have no children, but they seem to have adopted 
the community in which they live as the object of their solicitude. 
For there is no undertaking designed to promote the welfare of its 
people in any way in which they are not zealous and energetic par- 
ticipants, and all their efforts in this behalf are guided by intelligence 
and impelled by a high sense of duty and comprehensive breadth 
of view. 

When the Peoples Bank of Meadville was founded, Mr. Bargar 
was one of its leading promoters and was chosen president at its 
organization. He has held this office and directed the policy of the 
institution from the start, and under his wise and prudent manage- 
ment it has flourished and grown strong in its resources and in the 
confidence and regard of the people of the whole county. In the de- 
velopment and improvement of Parson Creek township it has been 
of great service, and toward individual patrons it has always been 
liberal and considerate. And thus it has helped the region in which 



314 HISTORY OF LINX COUNTY 

it is located and does business in both the public and the private life 
of its residents. 

In the fraternal life of the community Mr. Bargar has long been 
prominent and serviceable as a member of the Masonic order. While 
he seldom takes any part in political contests of any kind, he is a 
firm believer in the principles of the Republican party and gives it 
his support in all national and state campaigns. In reference to local 
interests he looks solely to the welfare of the people, and bestows his 
suffrage on the candidates he believes most likely to work for that. 
He is broad-minded and liberal in his views on all questions which 
divide men in opinion, and as tolerant toward the convictions of 
others as he is firm in his own. Every form of activity for good has 
his earnest practical support, and every duty of citizenship receives his 
careful and conscientious attention. Linn county has no better man 
within its borders, and none who is more universally esteemed. 



JAMES D. HATFIELD 

One of the best known and most highly esteemed farmers of 
Locust Creek township in this county, and one of its most sturdy and 
representative citizens, James D. Hatfield has won the station in the 
regard of his fellow men to which his merit entitles him, and the goal, 
in that respect, toward which he has been working throughout his 
quiet, unostentatious but very creditable and useful career. He has 
always performed his duty faithfully in all the relations of life, giving 
his own affairs close and careful attention, and ministering in the full 
measure of his power and opportunities to the growth, progress and 
improvement of his township and county. 

Linn county has an especial claim on the interest and regard of 
Mr. Hatfield. It is the coimty of his birth and has been the seat of all 
his operations. And, although these have been wholly in the unob- 
trusive domain of general farming, they have been valuable to the 
county in at least the same proportion in which they have been profit- 
able to him. His life began on May 10, 1871, and he is a son of William 
Henry Harrison and Euth A. (Beckett) Hatfield, who were married on 
June 15, 1865. 

The father was born in Eay county, Missouri, on September 20, 
1841, and moved to Linn county with his parents in 1853, when he was 
between twelve and thirteen years of age. He was reared on his 
father's farm, and was about to begin farming on his own account 
when the terrible storm cloud of the Civil War burst over our un- 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 315 

happy country. At that time, when the integrity of the Union was 
endangered, he deemed that his path of patriotism lay in the direction 
of the army of defense, and he promptly enlisted in Company F, First 
Missouri Cavalry. 

He was in the service three full years and took part in all the 
engagements in which his regiment participated. He was many times 
in the very midst of a deluge of death, but he escaped unharmed, and 
when mustered out of the army returned to his Linn county home. 
From then to the end of his life he was actively and profitably engaged 
in general farming, and the performance of his duties as a worthy 
man and good citizen deeply interested in the welfare of his county 
and its people. 

He died on February 7, 1910, and his remains were buried in the 
Beckett cemetery. By his marriage to Miss Ruth A. Beckett, which 
took place, as has been stated, on June 15, 1865, not long after his 
return from the war, he became the father of seven children, but three 
of whom are living: James D., his brother Walter Van Buren, and his 
sister Mary, who is the wife of Charles Palmer, of Eureka, Montana. 
James and Walter are joint occupants and cultivators of a farm of 
110 acres four miles south of Linneus. 

James D. Hatfield was reared and educated in Linn county, and 
lias passed all the years of his life to this time (1912) within its bor- 
ders. He has been a farmer from his youth and has studied his busi- 
ness to great advantage, applying the most approved modern methods 
to his work, and thereby greatly increasing the returns for his labor 
and giving force to his influence and example for progressiveness. 
He was married on June 29, 1904, to Miss May Chittum, also of this 
county, 

Walter Van Buren Hatfield, the only brother of James, and his 
partner in conducting the farm, was born in Linn county on July 27, 
1875, and from childhood his life has run parallel with that of his 
brother. He, too, has been a farmer ever since he was old enough, and 
has also been enterprising and progressive in the industry. He is 
active, energetic and knowing as a farmer, has public spirit and 
breadth of view as a citizen, and enjoys wide and well-founded popu- 
larity socially. He and his brother are members of the Order of Odd 
Fellows and take an active part in the work of the lodge to which they 
belong. On October 6, 1901, he was married to Miss Edith G. Logue, 
a native of Linn county. They have two children, their sons Harry 
L. and Joel James, who will probably be reared as farmers, too, and 
trained to follow in the footsteps of their father and his forefathers 



316 HISTOEY OF LIXX COUNTY 

for many generations, since farming is coming to be one of the most 
scientific and expansive of all the ordinary industries among men, and 
is likely to soon engage the best minds of the country, and pay them 
well for their atention to it. 



EDWARD RICHARD McDONNELL 

The first born of the five sons and only children of a very thrifty 
family, whose members, although they have all reached maturity and 
are in business for themselves, still all work together for their common 
good, with their father as general superintendent of their labors, 
Edward E. McDonnell, of Jefferson township, in this county, is a very 
interesting man, both in himself and in his unusual association with 
the other members of the family, and also in the striking example he 
and they give of the value of the unity of effort in a common cause. 

Mr. McDonnell is a native of County Tipperary, Ireland, where 
he was born on January 17, 1866, and the son of Alexander and Ellen 
(Dempsey) McDonnell, both of the same nativity as himself. The 
father was born in January, 1821, and was a farmer and jobber. The 
mother is the daughter of Joseph Dempsey, a man of local prominence 
in the county of her birth, and prosperous according to his circum- 
stances and opportunities. 

In 1867 the father determined to move his family to this country, 
where he believed he would find better chances in life for himself and 
his offspring than his own land gave any promise of, and accordingly 
he braved the stormy Atlantic in pursuit of his hopes. The expatriated 
voyagers landed in New York, where they remained two years. But 
the father had not come to the United States to be kept cooped up in 
a big city, and decided to seek some locality in the West where he 
could enjoy the larger and more open life of a vast expanse, with all 
of its awakening industries crying aloud lustily for help in their 
development. 

In 1869 he came to Missouri and took up his residence on a farm 
one mile and a half east of Clarence in Shelby county. He remained 
an that farm twenty years, making a good living for his family and 
gradually accumulating an estate of value. In 1889 he moved to Linn 
county and located about a mile and a half southwest of Laclede, 
where he is still living. The earnestness of his purpose in determining 
to make his home in this country for the remainder of his life was 
shown by the fact that as soon as he could, after his arrival on this 
side of the water, he took out his naturalization papers and became 



HISTORY OF LIN2^ COUNTY 31^ 

i. 11.11 ,om«d le L., .*„,d l„ „„ ,!„„ ™* "*"' 

theirTsri/ Tl, T '*'""■ ^"'^ inteliigenoe they bestow on 

anced eiiJt Ton ',:"' ^"" T"''/ "' ^'"''^'^'""^ improvement and ad 

tion to efervTtail'^nd '"T- ''?"" ''•"'"^" ^"'^ "^^ <='--* -tten- 
frnn, ™!.^ ■ ' "*''''*'' '° '* «" "^e information lie can -et 

t rom leading, observation and reflection. To the affairs nf hi^t ' 

of"nt:uf\^, ^"-^^ *"^ •^^- ■^"^<^ °^ atntion':. iV:: 

ot aiding w th all his poM-er and according- to his best imUm.niZ 
promoting: their further progress and development and cuTg fl e 

eiii 01 tiieii people. He supports effectively all worthy imdprtnl^irno.o 

rp;trr *'^^^ -''''''" -' '^^ "^^'^ ^^ •^'--- va/n-brar St; 

dans^tA^f t/^' ^^r7 ''' ^""^ '^""'"'^ t° Miss Katharine Carroll a 
daughter of Thomas Carroll, of Quincy, Illinois, The five children I nrn 

men citizenship. They are warmly interested in all the agen- 



318 HISTORY OF LIXX COUNTY 

cies at work among the people for their betterment, and manifest their 
interest in the most practical and beneficial way. They are fine types 
of the sturdiest manhood and womanhood of Jefferson township, and 
are everywhere admired and commended as most worthy and estimable 
persons. 



M. G. STURTEVANT 

M. G. Sturtevant, who is one of the prominent and progressive, 
and therefore highly successful, farmers ef Linn county, is admirably 
located on the old family homestead of 275 acres of the best farming 
land in Locust Creek township, about seven miles north of Brookfield, 
where he .carries on extensive farming operations, and owns one of 
the most comfortable and attractive of all Linn county rural homes. 
He is looked up to by his neighbors and acquaintances as a model 
farmer, whose example in modern scientific agricultural methods is 
well worthy of imitation, and cannot but be profitable in practical 
application to their own farming industry. 

Mr. Sturtevant was born in Sandusky county, Ohio, on October 
5, 1861, and was nine years old when his parents, Lyman and Elsie 
Jane (George) Sturtevant, moved from his native state to Missouri 
and took up their residence on the farm which he now owns and culti- 
vates. He is a brother of Eugene Sturtevant, in the sketch of whose 
life, elsewhere in this volume, the family history will be found briefly 
outlined. 

The immediate subject of these paragraphs obtained the greater 
part of his education in a country school in this county, and began 
farming on his own account soon after he left school. He has conducted 
Ms operations with great enterprise and progressiveness, and made 
them tell greatly to his own advantage and also to the benefit of the 
coimtry around him by the spirit of progress they have awakened 
and kept in action for many years throughout the township in which 
they are carried on. 

Mr. Sturtevant was married in November, 1887, to Miss Alice 
Murrain, and by this union has become the father of three children, 
all of whom are living. They are: Georgia, the wife of C. B. Cleveland, 
whose home is about five miles north of Brookfield; and Laura Esther 
and Charley Orie, who are still living at home with their parents and 
adding to the brightness, warmth and attractiveness of the parental 
family circle. 

The father gives great attention to matters of public improvement 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 319 

in Ms township and county, and is always zealous in behalf of the 
best interests of their people. He is not an active partisan in politics, 
a dogmatist in religion, or a controversialist on any subject. He is 
tolerant of the views of others, and gives cordial mental hospitality 
to any suggestion that seems of value, no matter what source it comes 
from, and systematically applies his intelligence, the result of his ob- 
servation and reflection, to the affairs of his locality with no view but 
that of securing the best results of every project started and every 
effort made for the good of the region and its inhabitants. He is an 
excellent citizen and universally esteemed as such, not only through- 
out Linn county, but in all other localities where his sterling qualities 
are known. 



JOHN R. FAIN 

(Deceased) 

Although he was nearly sixty years old when he died, the late 
John R. Fain, of Locust Creek township, Linn county, was at the 
height of his power and full of vigor, and gave promise of many years 
of active service to his family and his community before he was fatally 
stricken. His death occurred on April 3, 1909, when he was just fifty- 
nine years and seven months of age, but he had already achieved 
enough in his struggle for advancement among men to entitle him to 
high regard as a forceful and enterprising man, and had exhibited 
public spirit and enterprise in reference to the progress and develop- 
ment of his township and county, and the elevation and improve- 
ment of their people, of a character sufficiently valuable to give him a 
place among the best and most useful citizens of this part of the state. 

Mr. Fain was born in Howard county, Missouri, on September 3, 
1849, and was brought to Linn county by his parents in 1852, when 
they determined to make this county their home. After completing 
his education with such facilities as were available to him, he became 
a farmer, following the occupation of his ancestors for many genera- 
tions, and by industry, thrift and good management, rose to the first 
rank in the county in the extent and profitable results of his operations. 

On June 8, 1872, he was married to Miss Ellen Beckett, of Linn 
county, and by this union became the father of four children, three of 
whom are living, Frank, Lesbia and Edith, and all of them still have 
their home with their mother. The father's death was universally de- 
plored, and his remains were consigned to their last resting place, in 
the Beckett private burying ground, amid many manifestations of 



320 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

esteem from all classes of the people among whom he had lived and 
labored for so many years. 

The Fain family resided for several generations in Tennessee, 
and John Fain, Sr., the father of John R., was born in Wilson county 
of that state on May 19, 1812. He subsequently lived with his parents 
in Buncombe county. North Carolina, Habersham county, Georgia, 
and again in Tennessee, but this time in the eastern part of the state. 
In 1831, when he was but nineteen years of age, he came to Missouri 
to live, and located on a farm in Howard county. There he remained 
and cultivated his land until 1850. 

About that time the voice of a siren broke forth upon the world 
and set millions of its inhabitants in many lands on fire with eager- 
ness and hope. This was the voice of California informing mankind 
that her rivers, hills and mountains were teeming with gold, and call- 
ing upon all who wished a share of the treasure to come and get it. 
John Fain, Sr., hearkened to the call, and, in company with five of his 
neighbors, crossed the plains to the gold fields with ox teams. He was 
fairly successful in his venture, and continued his mining operations 
until 1852, when he met with a serious accident which crippled him 
for life. A heavy timber fell on one of his ankles and crushed it so 
badly that he never recovered the use of it. 

He then determined to return to his Missouri home and rejoin his 
family, making the trip by water down the Pacific, across the Isthmus 
of Panama by land, and again by water up the Mississippi and Mis- 
souri to the place of debarkation nearest to his residence. He had 
accumulated about $3,000 during his stay in California, but owing 
to the excessive cost of medical attendance and necessary remedies for 
his wounded limb, he arrived at his home with only $1,200. 

He at once moved his family to Linn county and took up his 
residence on a farm in Jefferson township, where he became one of 
the most enterprising, progressive and prosperous of all the farmers 
in that portion of the county, and one of the township's most promi- 
nent and influential citizens, being as enterprising and progressive 
for the locality in a general way as he w^as for himself, and devoting 
a great part of his energy to promoting its development and improve- 
ment. 

He was married in 1835 to Mrs. Catherine Davis, whose maiden 
name was Hall. Three of the nine children born to them are living: 
Benjamin, who makes his home with the family of his late brother 
John R.; Thomas J., a resident of Silt, Colorado; and Sarah Jane, 
the widow of William Beckett, of Seagoelville, Texas. Their mother 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 321 

died in 1876, and some time afterward their father contracted a second 
marriage in which he was united with Mrs. Rebecca (Peacher) 
Stearns, of Howard county in this state. 



MARCELLUS E. WARE 

This venerable son of an esteemed pioneer of Linn county, and 
who was brought to the county when he was but two years old, has 
lived here seventy-four years, and from his youth has been engaged in 
farming except a period of a little over three years, which he passed in 
the^Union army during the Civil War. The martial life and the defense 
of his country in times of danger came to him naturally, for he is from 
a family of soldiers, his father and one of his uncles having fought in 
the War of 1812. 

Mr. Ware was born in Chesterfield county, Virginia, on July 7, 
1836, and is a son of William and Harriet (Lockett) Ware, natives also 
of that county. The father was born in October, 1795, and at the age 
of seventeen enlisted in a Virginia regiment for the overthrow of 
British aggressions on our commerce in our second war with the 
mother country. In 1838 he brought his family to Missoujri and Linn 
county, making the long and trying journey with teams. 

He purchased a claim on his arrival in this county, and in 1843 
entered another on his record in the war. He improved his land and 
lived on it until his death, which occurred on August 20, 1862. The 
mother survived him four years to the day, dying on August 20, 1866. 
They were married in Virginia and had four sons and eight daughters, 
all now deceased but two of the sons and one of the daughters. In his 
political adherence the father was a Henry Clay Whig, and espoused 
the cause and doctrines of the great Kentucky statesman with ardor 
and defended them with vigor, for he was a well educated and very 
intelligent man. He and his wife were members of the Baptist church. 
The grandfather was a well-to-do Virginia planter and died in that 
state. He had two sons in the War of 1812. 

Marcellus E. Ware grew from infancy to manhood in Linn county 
and obtained his education in the early schools of the county. Primi- 
tive and crude in their housing and equipment, and narrow in their 
range of instruction as they were, they met all the requirements of the 
pioneers, for they and their children had no opportunity for advanced 
learning, the physical needs of their situation demanding all their time 
and attention except the meager allowance of the winter months for a 
few years which they were able to devote to schooling. 



323 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

Mr. Ware worked with Iiis father on the home farms until March, 
1862, when he enlisted in Company F, First Missouri Cavalry, to aid 
in fighting to save the Union from dismemberment. He was in the 
command of Major Mullins and was in the service a little over three 
years. His regiment was engaged in fighting bushwhackers mainly, 
but these predatory warriors kept it busy and gave it plenty of active 
service. Mr. Ware was wounded in October, 1864, in Linn county, 
Kansas, in an engagement with the army of General Sterling Price. 
After the war he returned home and has been farming in this county 
ever since. 

He was married in October, 1865, to Miss Emily Barnes, who died 
in 1882, leaving no children. Mr. Ware was married a second time 
within that same year, uniting himself with Miss Mary Alsbury, a native 
of Pike county, Illinois, and a daughter of Charles and Margaret 
Alsbury. They had eight children, six of whom are living: Eva J., 
Charles E., Oliie B., H. Elmer, Emma F. and Orpha M. The father is 
a Republican in political alliance. He has served as township trustee 
and school officer. He has been a member of the Baptist church for 
fifty-six years, devotedly loyal to it in feeling and service and fidelity 
to the teachings it enjoins. 

Mr. Ware is now among the oldest settlers of Linn county in the 
number of his j^ears and the length of his residence in the county. The 
early days with their dangers, privations and arduous toil are deeply 
impressed on his mind. He recollects distinctly when Indians were 
numerous in the county, when deer disported about the cabins of the 
pioneers, when wolves made night hideous with their bowlings, and 
when wild turkeys abounded in the whole region, unalarmed as yet by 
the gun of the hunter, unwise to the snares of the trapper, and seeing 
nothing to fear from the conquering invaders of their long undisturbed 
ranges. He can compare the state of the country then with what it is 
now, and rejoice in the share he has had in effecting the change. For 
he has always been alert and energetic in pushing forward the devel- 
opment and progress of the region, and doing his whole duty to it and 
its residents. 



THE PEOPLES BANK OF MEADVILLE 

This excellent fiscal institution is a state bank and was organized 
in June, 1903, with a capital stock of $15,000, and the following ofii- 
cers : H. K. Bargar, president ; T. J. Stevenson, vice president ; George 
W. Adams, cashier, and the president and vice president, with S. Darl- 



HISTORY OF LINX COUNTY 323 

ing and H. Hartsliorne, directors. Mr. Stevenson acted as vice pres- 
ident two years, and at the end of that period was succeedd by W. M. 
Botts. Three years later, however, he was again elected vice president, 
and he served in that office until his death in 1909. 

The present officers (1912) are: H. K. Bargar, president; F. J. 
Black, vice president; G. W. Adams, cashier; E. E. Smith, assistant 
cashier; and H. K. Bargar, W. M. Botts, H. Hartshorne, F. J. Black 
and N, H. Randall, directors. The capital stock has remained the same 
as at the start, but the bank has now $10,000 in undivided profits and 
surplus. It does a general banking business, embracing all approved 
features of modern banking, and is regarded as one of the most pro- 
gressive, enterprising and wisely managed banks of its size and capacity 
in Linn county. 

George W. Adams, the cashier and controlling spirit, is a native 
of Jackson county, Ohio, born on April 29, 1840. His parents, George 
M. and Melinda (Helphenstein) Adams, Avere born and reared in Vir- 
ginia and moved to Ohio in 1820, locating in Jackson countj^ where the 
father was a prosperous merchant tailor and passed all of the remain- 
der of his life except the last few years, when he made his home with 
his son George W., in whose residence he died in 1887. The mother 
passed away in 1870. They were the parents of five sons and three 
daughters. All of the daughters and three of the sons are living. 

The father served as auditor of Jackson county, Ohio, at one time, 
and in that office his son George W. began the active work of making his 
way in the world as a clerk. He grew to manhood in his native county 
and obtained his education in its public schools. After serving four 
years in the county auditor's office, he was engaged for three j^ears in 
the dry goods trade in association with his father, and during the Civil 
War he was a clerk in the commissary department of the Union army 
in Nashville. 

Mr. Adams remained in the military service to the close of the 
war, and in the fall of 1865 moved to Brookfield, Missouri, where he 
conducted a flourishing enterprise in the grocery trade for some time, 
and afterward was engaged in real estate transactions on a consider- 
able scale. He also served as deputy postmaster under W. E. Snow 
from 1873 to 1883. In the year last named he was elected county clerk 
of Linn county, filling the office eight years. Then in 1891 he moved to 
Meadville and founded the Bank of Meadville, which he served as 
cashier for one year. 

He returned to Brookfield, and in that city worked for Hartman, 
Tooey & Company, dealers in clothing and drygoods until 1893, when 



324 HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 

he became cashier of the Santa Fe Exchange Bank of Marceline. But 
he served in that capacity only a short time, as the people of the county 
again elected him county clerk, and he again occupied the office eight 
years in continuous and very acceptable performance of its duties. At 
the end of that period he once more turned his attention to banking, 
founding the People 's Bank of Meadville, with which he has ever since 
been connected. 

Mr. Adams was first married in May, 1861, to Miss Hattie Hyatt, 
who was like himself a native of Ohio. They became the parents of 
five children, two of whom are living, Edward M. and Hattie K., who 
is now the wife of Harry Root of Portland, Oregon. Their mother 
died in 1877, and the father chose as his second wife Miss Lida Martin, 
a sister of George W. Martin of Brookfield. They had three children, 
all of whom are living: George M., who is a resident of San Fran- 
cisco; Earl C, whose home is in St. Louis, Missouri; and Dr. Wilson 
R., who is a prominent physician and surgeon and resides in Linneus. 

Mr. Adams lost his second wife by death in 1898, and in January, 
1901, he contracted a third marriage, uniting himself on this occasion 
with Mrs. Mary D., the widow of L. N. Goodale of Meadville, who 
still abides with him. He has been a loyal and zealous Republican 
from his youth, and has always rendered his party energetic and effec- 
tive service. Fraternally he is a Freemason and a Knight of Pythias, 
and in religious connection a member of the Methodist Episcopal 
church. He is one of the leading citizens of Linn county, and is 
regarded by all classes of its people as one of the most upright, influen- 
tial and useful men in the county, and as a fine representative of all 
that is best in its manhood. The bank of which he is practically the 
head has prospered greatly under his judicious management, and every 
interest of the county has had, at all times, his cordial, intelligent and 
helpful support. 



JOSEPH T. WALKUP 

All of the sixty-two years of life that have passed for Joseph T. 
Walkup to the present time (1912) have been spent by him in Linn 
county. His earthly career began in this county on February 27, 1850 ; 
he grew to manhood here; he obtained his education in Linn county 
schools ; his two marriages occurred in the county, and united him with 
two Linn county ladies ; his children were born in the county, and all 
the years of his activity have been employed in Linn county industries. 
This record, which is not unusual in the older sections of the country. 



HISTOEY OF LIX^ COUNTY 



325 



where the march of history has proceeded for hundreds of years, and 
hosts of families have been settled for many generations, is some'what 
out of the ordinary in this comparatively new section, wherein civiliza- 
tion began scarcely more than three-quarters of a century ago, and 
where the population was for many years largelv of a migratory char- 
acter, while so much of the territory was open for choice of location 
and occupancy. 

Mr. Walkup is a son of John and Elizabeth (Smith) Walkup, 
natiyes of Boone county, Missouri, where the father was born on 
November 29, 1818, and the mother in 1823. The father grew to man- 
hood in Boone county and in 1839, soon after attaining his majority, 
came to Linneus. He was a gunsmith by trade and opened a shop in 
Lmneus. But he soon afterward took up land in Clay township and 
became a farmer. He broke up this land and brought it under cultiva- 
tion, then sold it and moved to a location three miles west of Linneus. 
On this he lived and labored many years, but finally moved to Chilli- 
cothe, Livingston county. The mother died in 1880 on the old farm and 
his life ended in 1901 at the ripe old age of eighty-three years. 

When the Mexican War began Mr. Walkup,' the father of Joseph, 
enhsted in the company recruited here by Captain Barbee to aid in 
defending the honor of his country and avenge the insults heaped upon 
its flag by the hot-headed and heedless Mexicans. He served in tha^ 
company throughout the war and was almost constantly on duty on 
the march or in the field during its progress, taking part in a number 
of its notable engagements, but escaping unharmed, although Death 
was often busy in the ranks around him. 

After the close of the short but decisive struggle Mr. Walkup 
returned to his Linn county farm and from then to the end of his life 
except during the Civil War, devoted himself to the pursuits of peace- 
ful industry. He continued farming, and was also verv active in church 
work as an exhorter and local preacher. In the Civil War he was again 
m arms, fighting for the Southern Confederacy under the command of 
General Price, his old commander in the Mexican conflict. He and his 
wife were the parents of three children who grew to maturitv and are 
yet living; Joseph T., Andrew F. and Mary J., who is now the wife of 
John G. Wiley and lives in Linn county. 

In politics the father was first a Whig and later a Democrat. He 
served as a justice of the peace for many years in this county. His 
father, Robert Walkup, the grandfather of Joseph, came as a pioneer 
to Boone county, this state, from his native state of Kentucky. He 
passed the remainder of his days in Boone county, residing there many 



326 HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 

years, as he came at an early date and lived to a ripe old age. He also 
was a farmer and a man of prominence and great activity in connection 
with the public affairs of the township and county in which he had his 
home. 

Joseph T. Walkup has followed farming from his boyhood, and 
has also engaged in raising and feeding live stock for many years, 
handling mostly cattle. He has shown himself to be a good farmer and 
live stock man, and has been successful in making both branches of his 
industry profitable to himself and beneficial to the country all around 
him. He manages his work with close attention to every detail, pushes 
it with energy and vigor, and secures results commensurate with his 
outlay of time and labor. 

Mr. Walkup was married in March, 1871, to Miss Mary L. Gish, 
and by this union became the father of two children, both of who have 
died. The mother is also deceased, having passed away on July 25, 
1910. The father contracted a second marriage on November 16, 1911, 
in which he was united with Josephine Bailey, a daughter of A. K. 
Bailey, now the postmaster of Meadville, where the lady was living at 
the time of the marriage. 

In the public affairs of his township Mr. Walkup has taken a lively 
and serviceable interest from the dawn of his manhood. He has served 
as township collector two years and as township trustee for four years. 
He was also trustee of Parson Creek township for eight years. He is 
a member of the Democratic party in political relations, of the Masonic 
order fraternally and he and wife of the Baptist church in religious 
connection. Both are favorably known and highly esteemed in all 
parts of Linn county, and in all other places where they have had 
opportunity to make their merit known to the people. 



ALBERT J. RICHARDSON 

The grit and pluck and self-reliance, which are always elements in 
the character and make-up of the real man, are strikingly shown in the 
case of Albert J. Eichardson, leading contractor and builder of Marce- 
line in this county. From the humble condition of a coal miner at the 
age of eleven years, and with no educational advantages but what he 
secured for himself through correspondence schools, Mr. Eichardson 
has raised himself to his elevated state of prosperity and conse- 
quence in the community of his present home. In very early life he 
was forced to live frugally and work hard, but his efforts for his own 



HISTORY OF LINX COUNTY 327 

advancement were steady and continued in spite of great difficulties, 
and his progress was of the same nature, as he held every foot of 
ground he gained in his struggle. 

Mr. Richardson was born at Rothville, Chariton county, Missouri, 
on June 4, 1880. He is a son of Silas J. and Alice E. (Hall) Richardson, 
the former a native of this state and the latter of Iowa. The father 
was a coal miner in his period of activity, but now both parents are 
living in Marceline. The son grew to manhood in Macon and Linn coun- 
ties, and for a short time at irregular intervals attended a public school. 
When he was but eleven years of age he began working in the mines at 
Lingo, Macon county, alongside of his father. 

He continued this toilsome and unpleasant occupation until 1906, 
part of the time in Macon county and part in Linn. In the year last 
mentioned he began working at the carpenter trade, and in 1909 started 
contracting on large buildings. Among the monuments to his skill and 
enterprise are the new Methodist Episcopal church in Marceline, which 
cost $14,000, two structures of magnitude in Macon county, and a num- 
ber of other buildings for business and residence purposes. He is 
highly capable in his craft, thoroughly conscientious in his work and 
guided in everything by a high sense of duty. The people where he is 
known esteem him cordially as a mechanic, a contractor and an excel- 
lent citizen. 

Mr. Richardson has been married twice, his first union, which was 
with Miss Myrtle Grady of Marceline, was formed in 1901. They had 
one child, their daughter Willner, whose mother died in 1908. In 
September, 1909, the father married again, becoming united with Miss 
Mary AVilson, who is still living. 

In the fraternal life of his community Mr. Richardson has taken 
an active interest as a member of the Order of Foresters and in its 
religious life and activities as a communicant and regular attendant 
of the Christian church. He has also been zealous and serviceable in 
the material advancement and improvement of his city and county. 
The very nature of his business makes him very desirous of such prog- 
ress and energetic in helping to promote it. His private efforts at 
mental development have been fruitful too, and have made him a well- 
informed man on a great variety of subjects and wise in the matter of 
public affairs. Although not an active partisan in politics, he believes 
firmly in the principles of the Republican party and adheres to them in 
the bestowal of his suffrage. His first interest in local affairs, how- 
ever, is the welfare of his locality and that of the people who live in it, 
which he never allows party considerations to overbear or becloud. He 



338 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

is regarded as one of Mareeline's best and most progressive, reliable 
and serviceable citizens. 



COL. GEORGE W. MARTIN 

A valiant soldier for the Union during the Civil War, and still 
bearing in the sight of all who meet him the mark of his service and 
devotion to the cause he espoused in the empty sleeve he wears as one 
result of the terrible carnage at Gettysburg; for many years owner 
and editor of the Brookfield Gazette, and still connected with it in a 
leading and very serviceable way; and at this time (1912) postmaster of 
the city in which he lives and has so long and so effectively labored 
for the good of its people, Col. George W. Martin, of Brookfield, has 
been true to his country and rendered it signal service in war and peace, 
in private life and official station, and always, under all circumstances, 
by the fine example he has given of genuine gentility and citizenship 
of the most elevated character. 

Colonel Martin was born near Sardis, Ohio, a village on the Ohio 
river in Monroe county about forty-two miles below Wheeling, West 
Virginia, and his life began there on December 30, 1838. He is a son 
of Wilson and Rebecca (Venham) Martin, long residents of the village 
of his nativity, where the father engaged in the cooperage and mer- 
cantile lines of activity. There also he served as postmaster and a 
justice of the peace for a long time, and there his life ended. The 
mother was a daughter of Ray Venham, who, while he was jet a mere 
boy, took part in Indian skirmishes when the red men were making a 
last desperate effort to hold the hills and valleys along the upper Ohio. 
He is honorably mentioned in De Hass' history of West Virginia for 
helping a wounded comrade to escape from the savages in one of the 
skirmishes which took place near Fort Henry in the neighborhood of 
Wheeling, West Virginia. The rescue was effected by crossing the 
river at night in a canoe in the very face of the Indians. 

The Martins were pioneer settlers in the Ohio river valley. Capt. 
Absalom Martin, a great uncle of the Colonel, served with distinction 
in the war of 1812. He was the founder of Martin's Ferry, and it is 
now claimed that he was the first permanent settler on the w^est bank of 
the Ohio, locating at and starting the town to which he gave his name 
before the settlement of Marietta, which, however, has far surpassed 
the earlier town in population, local influence and commercial im- 
portance. 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 339 

The Colonel's great-grandfather, Reuben Martin, who was of 
Welsh descent, was, at an early day, engaged in the iron industry in 
Essex county, New Jersey, before coming to what was then called the 
West, and was one of the pioneers of that industry in the United States. 
His great-grandmother was a native of Holland, and was related to 
Martin Van Buren, eighth president of the United States. 

Colonel Martin was educated in the public schools and at a private 
school in Woodsfield in his native county. He began teaching school 
in that county at the age of sixteen and continued two years. In 1856 
he came to Missouri and during the next three years taught in Lincoln 
and Montgomery counties. At the end of that time he returned to Ohio, 
and there he again engaged in teaching, remaining steadfast in the 
work until the beginning of the Civil War. When that terrible storm 
cloud of dissension and disaster broke upon our unhappy country he 
enlisted in Company B, Twenty-fifth Ohio Volunteer Infantry, one of 
the first three years ' regiments raised in Ohio. 

He was mustered out of the service on October 26, 1863, on account 
of disability from wounds. He took part with his regiment in the 
battles of Greenbriar, Alleghany Summit, McDowell, Second Bull Run, 
Chancellorsville and Gettysburg. He was wounded at Alleghany Sum- 
mit, McDowell, Chancellorsville and Gettysburg. From the wound 
received at Gettysburg he lost his right arm. He showed great capacity 
and fidelity in the army and received successive promotions. His first 
rank was first duty sergeant; from that he was raised to orderly ser- 
geant, and from orderly sergeant to first lieutenant. And in the battles 
of Chancellorsville and Gettysburg he was in command of his company. 

The Colonel served for a short time in 186.3 as regimental quarter- 
master, and in the spring of 1864 was made sutler of the One Hundred 
and Sixteenth Ohio Regiment, which he served in that capacity until 
October of the same year. He was then appointed purveyor of the 
First Brigade of the First Division of the Army of West Virginia. 
This division he accompanied as its purveyor to the Army of the James, 
remaining in his position and performing its duties well and wisely 
until the following spring. 

In the sjDring of 1865 he returned to Missouri and engaged for a 
time in mercantile business in Brookfield. In the fall of 1868 he was 
elected assessor of Linn countj^ for a term of two years. In 1870 he was 
elected clerk of the county court, and in 1874, was re-elected to this 
office, filling it with great acceptability to the court and the people 
eight years consecutively in all. Being cordially and intelligently inter- 
ested in the progress and improvement of every community in which 



330 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

he has lived, he strongly advocated the adoption of the system of town- 
ship organization by Linn county. 

He was the Republican nominee for state auditor in 1888, served as 
Department Commander of the Department of Missouri, Grand Army 
of the Republic in 1891 and 1892, and represented Linn county in tlie 
General Assembly of the state in 1907. In the meantime, however, 
after resuming his residence in Brookfield in January, 1879, he engaged 
in the real estate business, and about the same time was appointed 
local land agent for the Hannibal & St. Joseph Railroad Company, in 
which position he was able to do a great deal for the development and 
improvement of the county. 

Another field of effort in which he has done a large amount of good 
for the county is that of journalism, he having for a number of years 
owned and edited the Brookfield Gazette, for which he still writes edi- 
torials. He wields a fluent and graceful pen, which is burnished gold 
and dieering with good fellowship when there is no cause for it to 
be otherwise, but can be tempered steel when occasion demands that 
it shall. He is a strong and able writer at all times, and his name 
stands high in editorial work and in the domain of journalism all over 
the state. 

His political alliance has always been with the Republican party 
since he has been a voter, and he has rendered the party great service 
with pen and voice for many years, rising on his ability and zealous 
work for it to a position of leadership in its councils, where his judg- 
ment is always regarded as of great value and his influence is of com- 
manding weight. On account of his loyalty to his party, his unques- 
tioned ability and his high character he was appointed postmaster of 
Brookfield in March, 1911, and is still filling the office with great satis- 
faction to the people and high credit to himself in every way. 

On October 24, 1865, Colonel Martin was married to Miss Sarah 
J. Wilson, of Wheeling, West Virginia. Mrs. Martin, who died on April 
3, 1900, was a lady of unusual ability and superior accomplishments. 
She served two terms as Department President of the AVomen's Relief 
Corps for the Department of Missouri, and one term as National Pres- 
ident of that organization. The three children born of their union 
are : Georgie, now Mrs. E. H. Shepperd ; William W., who is assistant 
cashier of the Linn County Bank, and married Miss May Doane; and 
Charles H., who is unmarried. The father is a member of the ** Inde- 
pendent Order of Odd Fellows," of the ''Benevolent and Protective 
order of Elks," of the "Grand Army of the Republic," and of the 
*' Missouri Commandery of the Military order of the Loyal Legion." 



HISTORY OF LINX COUXTY 331 

GUY W. BIGGER 

With an ancestry that began in England generations ago, and has 
run in the history of this country through several states and shone in 
many lines of useful action almost from colonial times, Guy W. Bigger, 
one of the prominent and successful hardware merchants of Marceline 
has had high incentives to elevation and patriotism in his citizenship, 
uprightness and public spirit in his conduct and energy and enterprise 
in his business. He is the great-grandson of a native of England who 
came to this country and settled in Virginia soon after the Revolution, 
and who raised a regiment for the defense of his adopted land in the 
War of 1812. He is the grandson of one of the pioneers of Linn count}'' 
who located within its limits in 1844 and passed the remainder of his 
days here, improving land and adding greatly to the progress and 
importance of the country. And he is a son of Clellen G. and Leah J. 
(Powers) Bigger, a sketch of whose lives will be found on another page 
of this work, and which contains a more extended and explicit history 
of the family. 

Guy W. Bigger was born at Linneus in this county on June 24, 
1871, and grew to manhood there. He began his education in the 
schools of Linn county and completed it at the University of Michigan. 
He then returned to this county and took up his residence in Marceline, 
where he served as assistant postmaster under Jackson Whiteman, and 
afterward as postmaster to fill out an unexpired term of which there 
were eight months remaining, this term expiring in 1903. 

In 1904 he started his enterprise in the hardware trade, and to this 
he has since given his time and attention with highly commendable 
industry and gratifying profits. He has been successful in his business 
from the start, not only in building up a large and remunerative trade, 
but also in establishing himself firmly in the confidence and esteem of 
the people as a progressive and up-to-date merchant, a wideawake and 
public-spirited citizen and an upright and estimable man. 

His reputation for the possession of these qualities of character 
and manhood is not confined to the county of his residence, but extends 
over the adjoining coimty of Chariton also, and as well through Macon 
and other neighboring counties. In all his demeanor as a man, and in 
the management of his business, he has shown that he has not been 
indifferent to the inspiration drawn from his ancestry, and that the 
lessons involved in the examples of his forefathers have not been lost 
upon him. 

He has taken a lively and helpful interest in the progress and 



333 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

improvement of his township and county, with energy in promoting the 
welfare of their residents and public interests of every kind, and broad 
intelligence and clearness of vision in finding the best ways in which 
to do good for the whole people in every way, morally, mentally, socially 
and materially. He can always be counted on to do his part toward the 
successful accomplishment of every worthy undertaking, and the peo- 
ple, wherever he is known, look upon him as one of the most serviceable 
men in this part of the state of Missouri. 



EZEKIEL SMITH 



Born in Ireland, reared to the age of fifteen in Canada, learning 
his trade of plasterer and bricklayer in Buffalo, New York, and work- 
ing at it in different parts of the country from the Atlantic to the 
Pacific, Ezekiel Smith, one of the leading farmers of Marceline town- 
ship, has swept a large part of this continent in his wanderings and, 
unlike the proverbial rolling stone, has gathered substance wherever 
he has been. For he has been capable and industrious, with a genius 
for large affairs and business ability of a high order, quick to see, alert 
to seize and wise to use to the best advantage for himself every oppor- 
tunity that has come his way. 

Having come to Missouri from Chicago, after a residence of some 
years in that city, Mr. Smith is familiarly known as "Chicago Smith" 
all over Linn county, where he settled on his arrival in this state 
for a permanent residence in 1902, He was born in County Tyrone, 
Ireland, on December 25, 1846, and is a son of John and Jane (Hazel- 
ton) Smith, also natives of that country, and belonging to families 
long domesticated among its people. They emigrated to Huron 
county, Ontario, Canada, in 1846, while their son Ezekiel was yet an 
infant, and there they died, the mother in 1851 and the father in 1860. 
The father was a farmer in his native land and also in Canada. Four 
children, two sons and two daughters, were born of their union, and 
all of them are living in the United States, Ezekiel and one of his 
sisters, however, being the only members of the family who are resi- 
dents of Missouri. The other son and daughter have their homes in 
Chicago. 

Ezekiel Smith dwelt to the age of fifteen years in Ontario and 
obtained a common school education there. At the age mentioned he 
crossed the line to Buffalo, New York, and there he learned his trade 
as a bricklayer and plasterer. After completing his apprenticeship he 
moved to New York city, and a short time afterward to Titusville, 



HISTORY OF LIXN COUNTY 333 

Pennsylvania. In both places he worked at his trade, but in the latter 
did contracting on a large scale in it, putting up a number of large 
works of construction. He also had control of the construction work 
at the Pan American Exposition in Buffalo and erected over eighty 
per cent of the buildings for that great enterprise, what he put up 
amounting to more than $1,000,000 in value. He did over $1,300,000 
worth of work at World's Fair, Chicago. He also built over $1,500,000 
worth of structures of different kinds for the Louisiana Purchase 
Exposition at St. Louis, and had large contracts in construction work 
in San Francisco after the earthquake, putting up the new Mills build- 
ing, the First National Bank, and other large structures in that city. 
In addition he built Section 14 of the Chicago drainage canal. 

Mr. Smith located in Chicago in 1866, and from then until 1902 
he did contract work in plastering in that city. In the year last named 
he moved to Missouri and Linn county, taking up his residence on 800 
acres of land which he bought in 1874. As a farmer he has been 
progressive and wide-awake, keeping pace with the utmost advance in 
the science of agriculture and applying the most approved modern 
methods in all his operations. As a stockbreeder he enjoys the dis- 
tinction of being the first importer of draft horses in this part of 
Missouri, and also the first importer of Shorthorn cattle here. He has 
recently turned his attention to speed horses and is producing some 
very fine ones, for he aims at the best results in all his work of every 
kind and omits no effort on his part necessary to secure them. 

Mr. Smith has been married twice. His first union in wedlock 
was with Miss Mary Golding, of Chicago, and took place on October 
11, 1869. By this marriage he became the father of two daughters: 
Alice M., who is now the wife of Paul Chase and lives in California; 
and Lulu J., who died a number of years ago. The mother of these 
children passed away in 1894, and on April 18, 1896, the father con- 
tracted a second marriage in which he was united with Miss Ella 
Donaldson, of Illinois. They have three children, Ernest D., Agnes H. 
and Newcomb C. 

Mr. Smith is one of the best known and most esteemed farmers 
and citizens of Linn county. His farm is a model of skill in cultivation 
and attractiveness in improvements. He does his part in all essentials 
and the bounty of nature in this part of the country does the rest, and 
the results accomplished are highly gratifying and profitable to him 
and of great and wide-spread benefit to the people living around him 
throughout a large extent of country, near at hand, and to others in 
more distant localities, wherever his operations reach. 



334 HISTOEY OF LINX COUNTY 

In the public affairs of the township and county of his residence 
he is zealously and intelligently active, aiding by every means at his 
command all undertakings for the improvement and progress of the 
region and the substantial and enduring welfare of its people. He is 
public spirited and enterprising for the county, as he is for himself, 
and his work for its advantage is energetic and effective. He is not an 
active partisan and has no desire for public office, but he votes with the 
Republican party because he believes in its principles and feels it his 
duty as a citizen to do all he can for tlie good of his community, 
Throughout the Middle West he is well and favorably known, and 
everywhere he is held in the highest esteem as a citizen, as a business 
man and as a fine type of true Americanism. Linn county knows no 
better farmer or more enterprising and useful resident within the 
whole compass of her territory. 



EDGAR E. MASON 

Born, reared and educated in Vermont, and habituated to the 
conditions, customs and methods of thought and action in New Eng- 
land until after the dawn of his manhood, Edgar E. Mason, now one 
of the most prominent and successful general farmers and live stock 
breeders in this county, found himself in a very different atmosphere 
when he came to this part of the country in 1878 at the age of twenty- 
two years. Yet with the universal adaptability of the American mind, 
he has so suited himself to the requirements of his present environ- 
ment, and made all its conditions so completely serviceable to him, 
that he is as if native here and without knowledge of or training in 
any other locality. 

Mr. Mason was born in Bennington county, Vermont, on March 19, 
1856, and is a son of Elijah B. and Sarah A. (Gillmore) Mason, also 
natives of that county. Tlie father was a farmer and brought the 
members of his household to Missouri and this county in the autumn 
of 1877. He then bought eighty acres of the farm now owned and cul- 
tivated by his son Edgar, w^hich comprises 200 acres at this time, and 
has been transformed from a wild and unbroken prairie by the indus- 
try, intelligence and skill of two generations of the family into one 
of the best farms in Missouri of its size. 

The father was born in 1825 and died in 1829. The mother's life 
began in 1827 and ended in 1897. They were the parents of three sons 
and one daughter, but their son Edgar is the only member of the 
family now living in this state. His grandfather, Christopher Mason, 



HISTORY OF Lm^ COUNTY 335 

^I-^qT Z^^^'' ^''^}'' '"'^'^ ^^"'" ^^^^^^ ^^«^^ ^as Leah Barber 
111 1/98 They were farmers in Vermont and died in that state, in 
which the progenitors ot the American branch of the family set led 
on their arrival in this country from England. 

Edgar E. Mason was reared and educated in his native state, and 
followed farming m that state until the spring of 1878 He then 
joined his parents in this county, and at once went to work assisting in 
breakmg up the land and making it over into a good farm. He has 
lived m this county ever since, and has made all his New England 
mgenmty and enterprise tell to his own advantage and that of the 
county. In addition to his extensive general farming operations he 
is largely engaged in breeding superior strains of live stock, includino- 
Percheron horses, registered stock, registered Duroc-Jersey hogs'' 
Delame-Mermo sheep and some registered Holstein cattle, all of high 
grade and produced with every care in all the details of the business 
at every step of its progress. 

On January 3, 1877, Mr. Mason was united in marriage with Miss 
feelma Myers, a daughter of Highland H. and Eliza (Babcock) Mvers 
natives of Vermont who came to Missouri and Linn county in i88'>' 
and now reside in Brookfield. The father is a miller by trade and in 
his period of activity made himself very serviceable in this reo-ion 
where men of his craft were scarce and widely scattered in the earlv 
days. 

Mr. and Mrs. Mason have eight children: Charles, a prosperous 
Linn county farmer; Ida, who is the wife of J. R. Edgar, and lives in 
Manila, in the Philippine Islands; Ethel, who is married to Dr H D 
Kneedler, a practicing physician, also in Manila; Harry, who is farm- 
ing m this county; Sarah, who is another member of the family resid- 
ing^ m the Pilippines; Ruby, who is attending school in Brookfield- 
and Geneva and Meritt, who are living at home with their parents' 
All the members of the family belong to the Methodist Episcopal 
Church. They are all esteemed as most estimable and useful citizens 
and fine representatives of Linn county manhood and womanhood in 
every way. 

JOHN L. STEPHENS 

Beginning before the dawn of his manhood and continuino- his 
operations m the same line ever since, John L. Stephens, of Locust 
Creek township, has been farming in Linn county for over fifty years 
In that long period the industry in which he is engaged has undergone 



336 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

several progressive revolutions, but he has kept pace with the changes 
in methods and the progress in results, and is now, as he has ever been 
since his start, one of the most enterprising and advanced farmers 
of his township, a region in which there are many in the first rank. 

Mr. Stephens is a native of Woodford county, Kentucky, where he 
was born on November 8, 1839, but was brought to Linn county, 
Missouri, by his parents when he was less than three years old, and 
has lived within its boundaries ever since. He was educated in its 
country schools, grew to manhood in association with its people, and 
has devoted all his time and attention to faithful labor in one of its 
leading industries and earnest efforts for its progress and development 
and the substantial welfare of its inhabitants. He is therefore wholly 
a product and a representative of the county, and wherever he is 
known is esteemed as a worthy one. 

He is a son of John and Jane (Singleton) Stephens, the former a 
native of Woodford county, Kentucky, born on December 22, 1792, 
and the latter a daughter of John Singleton, of Virginia. They had 
two children: their son William Henry, who died on October 9, 1883, 
and John L., the interesting subject of this brief sketch, who is living 
on his excellent farm eight miles northwest of Brookfield. This gives 
strong proof of his skill and good judgment as a farmer, and his intel- 
ligence and culture as a man. 

On January 26, 1869, Mr. Stephens was married to Miss Mary 
Alexander, a daughter of John and Olive (Root) Alexander. Two 
of the three children born in the Stephens household are living: Ed- 
ward H., who assists his father in the management of the home farm 
and lives on it ; and Zelma, the wife of Victor Brown, who resides near 
Eagle Butte, in South Dakota, also on a farm. The father is earnest 
in his interest in the improvement of his township and county, as has 
been suggested, and energetic in his efforts to push their progress 
along as rapidly as wholesome and substantial development will per- 
mit. He takes an active part in increasing the power and usefulness 
of all good agencies at work among their people, physical, mental, 
moral and political. 

Edward H. Stephens, the only living son of John L., and his 
mainstay on the home farm, is also a Linn county product and an ad- 
mirable representative of its sterling and sturdy citizenship. He was 
born on the farm where he now has his home on November 7, 1869, 
and obtained his education in the district school in the neighborhood. 
Like his father and his grandfather, he has followed no occupation 
but farming, and to this he has devoted studious and reflective atten- 



HISTOKY OF LINN COUNTY 33y 

tion, so that he is up-to-date in theory and methods in his work and 

LX^f tin^/t"^^ ^" '''-''''''' ^"^ ''' ^^— ^ '^- -' 
On September 6, 1896, he was united in marriage with Miss Clara 
Morns, daughter of Rice and Kate (Nelson) Morris! of Linnens One 
child was born of the union, a son named John, who is hving with m! 
grandparents. H.s mother died on July 4, 1899 and her rem^ails we e 
buued m Lmneus cemetery, amid many manifestations of profound 

munity ot one of its most esteemed young matrons. 



MATTHEW CLARKE 

The interesting subject of this brief memoir is one of the most 

and one of its best known and most esteemed citizens. He is of dis 
tingnished parentage and family connections, but his reputet on a^ a 
man and citizen and his hold on the confidence and regard of the Peo 
pie hroughout the two counties in which he is well known are the' 
Id om^'th^dT f ■■"°f ,--f and strong manhood, without a'; 
any S. •'''*'°"*"'" "^ ^'' father or extraneous circumstances of 

Mr. Clarke was born in Jackson county, Iowa, on August 10 1859 

Ire a.7 Zl liMatt " 'f /T ^""''''^ ''''''''' "'« ^''™- ^ "«- "^ 
He father J^u FM ^"^.P^^-'^tage, but born in Pennsylvania, 
-ner laUier, John Elder, was lieutenant in the War of 181'> under 
General Porter and did valiant service at Fort Meggs. The father's 
hfe began in the Emerald Isle on November 18, isle, where M par 

In 18^0 tT'/"',''''^' ^"^"■'•^'^"' '^'^^'^■^' --«^1- boi-n and ; are": 
count Ak 7- """' **' ""^ ^""'^•^ states and located in Perry 

conn y, Ohio, makmg its home at the town of Somerset, where its 
members remained three years. They then removed to Trre Haute 
Indiana, and there Francis was employed on government work subi 
quently becoming a contractor. ' 

th»t^' ^°'!'"'"' ^^i' ^''"' °^ ""^'^^y at Terre Haute until 1840 In 
that year he moved to Jackson county, Iowa, where he entered 3-^0 
a res of government land and turned his attention to farming The'; 
also, he was married in 1844 to Miss Jane Elder. By this marriaop 1,1 
became the father of seven children: Edward, Patrick, Ma" Thomas 
Irancis, Jr., Matthew and Ann. In 1867 lie sold his Iowa 'farmed 



338 HISTOEY OF LIXK COUNTY 

moved to Missouri, locating in Chariton county, where he improved a 
farm of 420 acres, on which he passed the remainder of his life and died 
on January 15, 1891. The mother died on April 2, 1902. Five of their 
children are living, three in this state and two of the sons in Idaho. 

The father was a first cousin to General Phil. Sheridan, the noted 
cavalry leader of the Union army during the Civil War. He was an 
extensive dealer in live stock and prominent in the business, as well 
as very successful. In politics he was a life-long Democrat, and a man 
of such influence in his party in Chariton county that he was called 
by everybody "the Big Chief," but he would never accept a political 
office of any kind. In church connection he was a Catholic and a de- 
vout and consistent member of the faith, devoted to the interests of 
the congregation to which he belonged and a zealous worker in pro- 
moting them. He was almost as well known in Linn county as in 
Chariton, and was held in the highest esteem by the people in all parts 
of both, holding the most elevated rank in public regard both as a 
man and a citizen. 

Matthew Clarke was eight years old when his parents became 
residents of Chariton county, and he grew to manhood on the family 
homestead not far from Marceline. He obtained his education in the 
district schools and has followed farming ever since he left school. 
He now owns 425 acres of land, all improved and constituting one of 
the finest farms in the two counties of Linn and Chariton, and one 
which can hardly be surpassed in fertility and skill in cultivation in 
the wi3ole northeastern part of the state. 

Mr. Clarke was married on November 1, 1885, to Miss Clara But- 
ler, a daughter of Timothy and Abigail (Derrough) Butler, long resi- 
dents of Chariton county. Mr. and Mrs. Clarke have had seven 
children, six of whom are living: Blanche, Timothy, Anna, Charles, 
Mary and Matthew, Jr. The members of the family all belong to the 
Catholic Church. In connection with his farming operations, the 
father handles live stock on a large scale and is very successful in the 
business. 



ROBERT GLENN 



The grandson of a Revolutionary soldier who fought valiantly 
for the independence of the American colonies when the liberties of 
mankind were at stake; the nephew of other gallant soldiers who 
fought with all their ardor in the War of 1812, in which our country 
established its freedom on the seas, as by the Revolution it established 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 339 

its freedom on land ; and himself a faithful servitor and defender of his 
country in the Civil War, Robert Glenn, now one of the progressive, 
enterprising and successful farmers of this county, is not only a scion 
of a military house, but has shown in his own record on the battlefield 
that the lessons of his ancestors were not lost on him, and that the 
patriotic spirit which impelled them descended to him in full measure. 

Mr. Glenn was born in Marion county, this state, on May 8, 1841, 
and is a son of Absalom and Artemesa (Pepin) Glenn, natives of 
Mason county, Kentucky. The father was a farmer after reaching his 
maturity, and was a young man thirty-one years old when the family 
moved to Missouri. He was born in 1801, and his parents and the 
rest of the household located in this state in 1832. In 1844 he moved 
to Linn county and entered a tract of government land which he cleared 
and transformed into a fine farm, on which he died in 1862. His wife 
survived him forty years and passed away in 1908 at the age of ninety- 
four years. 

They were the parents of four sons and seven daughters, and 
seven of the eleven are living, two of the sons and one of the daughters 
in Linn county. The grandfather, Robert Glenn, was born in Hagers- 
town, Maryland, and emigrated from there to Mason county, Ken- 
tucky, where he died in 1858. He was a planter on an extensive scale 
and at every period of his life intensely interested in the welfare of 
his country. When the aggressions of Great Britain became too seri- 
ous for the colonists to endure, and the United States declared their 
independence, he took the field with his patriotic neighbors and friends 
and helped to swell the numbers and augment the spirit of the ''Old 
Maryland Line," which was the flower of General Washington's army, 
and proved to be its salvation on more than one gory field. He lived 
to be ninety-two years of age and died universally respected. The 
same intense devotion to country descended to his sons, two of whom 
fought under General Jackson in the battle of New Orleans. 

In the third generation the interesting subject of this brief memoir 
also followed the flag of his country to the battlefield, enlisting in de- 
fense of the Union in the Sixty-second Missouri Militia for service 
during the continuance of the Civil War. He was three years old when 
the family moved to Linn county, and here he grew to manhood and 
obtained his education, attending select schools for his instruction. 
Wlien he was sixteen he bought some land in Livingston county and 
for a time lived on and cultivated that. But he returned to Linn 
county after a short absence, and from that time to the present he has 
been one of the sturdy, enterprising and progressive cultivators of 



340 HISTOKY OF LINN COUNTY 

the soil in this favored agricultural region. He owns 160 acres and 
does general farming of a high order. 

Mr. Glenn was married in 1863 to Miss Julia A. Worlow, a 
daughter of Peter Worlow, one of the early pioneers of Linn county, 
settling in this part of Missouri about 1833. He was born in North 
Carolina and moved to Kentucky at an early age. From there he came 
to this ,county, and here he passed the remainder of his days, dying on 
his farm in Linn county, Missouri, at the age of sixty-one years, after 
a long record of useful labor which embraced three states in its course. 

Mr. and Mrs. Glenn have seven children living: Sarah M., who is 
now the wife of A. J. Harter and resides in Linn county, Missouri; 
Kate E., who married G. F. Lacey and dwells with him in Los Angeles, 
California; Moses, who is a farmer in Linn county, Missouri; Nannie, 
who is the wife of Silvester Carter and has her home in Kansas; 
James R., who is engaged in blacksmithing in Linn county, Missouri; 
Frances, who is one of the leading teachers of Livingston and Linn 
counties; and Vich, who is the wife of Dr. G. S. Fitzjohn, of Seattle, 
"Washington. Another daughter named Elva died a number of years 
ago. The parents are members of the Baptist Church. They are well 
known and highly esteemed in all parts of Linn county and many 
places beyond its borders. 



GREGORY HOLCER 

Born in Germany and living in that country to the age of ten 
years ; reared from that age to manhood in Illinois ; beginning life for 
himself as a farmer on the rich alluvial soil of the Prairie State; join- 
ing the mighty army raised for the defense of the Union and serving 
throughout the Civil War from the time of his enlistment; receiving 
two wounds in battle, and, after the close of the historic struggle, 
returning to his former pursuit in the domain of peaceful industry, in 
which he has ever since been engaged, Gregory Holcer of Clay town- 
ship, and one of its best known farmers, has had a varied and instruc- 
tive career, and has profited by its lessons, which, though often stern 
and severe, have all been useful. 

Mr. Holcer is a native of the grand-duchy of Baden, Germany, 
where his life began on February 1, 1837, in the old family home which 
had been occupied by his father's branch of the household three hun- 
dred years. His parents were Antone and Barbary (Bellum) Holcer, 
who were of the same nativity as himself. The father was a farmer 
and followed his line of industry in his native land until 1847, when he 



HISTOPtY OF LINN COUNTY 341 

brought his family to the United States. The family then consisted of 
the parents and their two sons. The father bought land in Madison 
county, Illinois, after reaching this country, and on that continued his 
farming operations until his death, which occurred in the adjoining 
county of Bond m 1879. '' ^ 

The mother died in less than one year after her arrival in America 
passing away m 1848, and the father married again, being connected in 
his second umon with Miss Anna Deticker, a native of Switzerland and 
by this marriage became the father of three additional children One 
son resides m Linn county, and here his mother died. The parents 
were German Catholics, the father and both of his wives, and all devout 
m their religious duties and faithful to the teachings of the church 
_ Gregory Holcer began his education in Germanv and complet"ed it 

Zl% f Tlf''^ ''^'''^' '^ ^"^^"^'- ^' ^««^^"^« l^e ^^s able to 
start for himself the struggle for advancement among men he beo-an 

farming, and he adhered to this line of industrv in Illinois until 186-^ 
In that year he enlisted in the Twenty-second Illinois Volunteer Infan- 
try, Company E, Union army, and served in that regiment until he was 
discharged on account of disabilities incurred in the service 

When he recovered his health, which was but a few months later 
he again enlisted, becoming a member of Companv E, Thirtieth 
Missouri Volunteer Infantry, and in this command he" remained until 
he dose of the war. He took part in the battles of Arkansas Post and 
the Yazoo nver, the siege of Vicksburg, the capture of Jackson, Missis- 
sippi, and Fort Beauregard, Louisiana, the Red River expedition and 
the battle of Mobile. At Vicksburg he was shot through several fingers 
b 1865^ ^^ ''^'^'''^'^ ^"^ honorable discharge from the army 

He returned from military service to his Illinois home, where he 
remained until 1868, then came to this county and bought the land in 
Clay township on which he now lives. The land was in its state of 
primeval wildness when he bought it. He has made all the improve- 
ments on It and transformed it into a model farm of considerable value 
rich m productiveness, desirable in location, attractive in general 
appearance and up to a high standard in condition. 

On April 28, 1874, Mr. Holcer was married to Miss Mai*^^ Hern a 
native of Switzerland, who was brought to the United States bv her 
parents when she was but three years old. Seven children have been 
born of the union, all of whom are living: Anna J., Charles A.. Robert 
i^., Evelena, Benjamin H., Levi M. and Zeta. All the members of the 
tamily are zealous m religious duties, and also earnest in their support 



342 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

of all good agencies at work in their commnnity. The father belongs to 
the Catholic church and the mother is a Cumberland Presbyterian. 

Mr. Holcer is a Eepublican in political faith and allegiance, but, 
although firm in his convictions and devoted to the success of his party, 
he has never sought or desired public office. He has, however, taken 
an active, practical and helpful interest in the progress and improve- 
ment of Ins township and county, and given every undertaking designed 
to promote their advancement his earnest and energetic support. 
Throughout the county the people esteem him highly for his excellent 
character as a man and his uprightness and progressiveness as a 
citizen. 



JOHN J. DEININGER 

Although but eight years a resident of Linn county, and modest 
and unobtrusive in his manner, John J. Deininger of Jefferson town- 
ship is well known throughout the county as an enterprising and pro- 
gressive farmer and a very active, far-seeing and successful live stock 
breeder. He has been in many parts of the country and has an exten- 
sive knowledge of it and of the springs of action for its residents in 
various sections. The lessons of experience and observation have been 
valuable to him in self-knowledge and development also, and he came to 
his present undertaking well prepared by nature and training for car- 
rying it on successfully. 

Mr. Deininger was born near Harrisburg, Dauphin county, Penn- 
sylvania, on May 15, 1858, and that county was also the place of nativity 
for his parents, John H. and Caroline (Zimmerman) Deininger. The 
father was a carpenter, and soon after the birth of his son John moved 
his family to Putnam county, Illinois, locating there in 1859. In his 
new home he engaged in farming and also worked at his trade. He 
died there on February 2, 1902, aged seventy-six years. The mother 
died in 1907 at the age of seventy-five. They were the parents of five 
sons and seven daughters. Two of the sons and six of the daughters 
are living, but John J. is the only member of the family who resides in 
this state. 

The father was a Republican and prominent in the councils of his 
party in Illinois, where he was elected to a number of local offices. He 
and his wife were members of the German Lutheran church. The 
grandfather, John Deininger, was born and reared in Pennsylvania, 
where he passed the whole of his life. He had a small family, all the 
members of which were Pennsylvanians by birth and passed consid- 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 343 

erable portions of their lives in that great state, taking an active part 
in its multitudinous industries. 

John J. Deininger was but a few months old when he was taken 
by his parents from his native state to Putnam county, Illinois. He 
grew to manhood in that county and obtained his education in its dis- 
trict schools. After leaving school he learned the carpenter trade and 
worked at it twelve years, during a considerable part of the time being 
in the employ of the Burlington & Missouri Eiver Railroad, erecting 
buildings along the line. He helped to put up the depot in Cheyenne 
and many others of the most important structures erected by the road 
at that time, and remained in its employ eight years. At the end of 
that period he passed one year in the state of Washington, and then 
three in Chicago working at his trade. From Chicago he returned to 
Putnam county, Illinois, where he remained doing carpenter work 
until 1905. 

In that year he came to this county and bought the farm of 200 
acres which he now owns and cultivates, and on which he lives. While 
he does general farming, he devotes his time and energies mainly to 
raising live stock of high grades, particularly Aberdeen-Angus cattle, 
registered stock. He makes a great success of his undertaking, and 
his name stands high in all the markets for the excellence of his prod- 
ucts, while locally they are in great demand for the purpose of improv- 
ing the grade of cattle in this part of Missouri and the adjoining states. 

On January 23, 1895, Mr. Deininger was united in marriage with 
Miss Hattie Umbarger, a native of Illinois and daughter of Josiah 
and Jane (Allen) Umbarger. The father died in 1909 and the mother 
is now living at Melvin, Ford county, Illinois. Mr. and Mrs. Deininger 
have three children, Bloyce A., Herma 0. and John McNabb. The 
father is a Eepublican in his poHtical faith and allegiance, and an 
energetic supporter of the principles and candidates of his party, 
although his personal ambition does not run in the direction of public 
office or poHtical prominence. He did, however, serve as county 
assessor while living in Illinois. In fraternal relations he is connected 
with the Independent Order of Odd Fellows. 

Mr. Deininger has shown his interest in the progress and improve- 
ment of Linn county and Northern Missouri generally in practical ways 
of value by giving his aid and helpful counsel toward the promotion 
of every worthy and commendable enterprise involving the general 
welfare of this region and the enduring good of its people. His course 
m such matters is always directed by intelligence and measured by a 
broad and energetic public spirit, and is highly appreciated by the 



344 HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 

whole population. He is considered a valuable addition to the pro- 
ductive forces in this county and an ornament to its citizenship, and 
is cordiallv esteemed in accordance with this estimate. 



BYRON LAMME 



Born in the midst of an active and comprehensive agricultural 
industry; reared on a farm and learning its requirements by practical 
work in all departments of its operations ; obtaining his education at a 
country school in which all his associates were the children of farmers, 
and with no practical knowledge of any other pursuit, Byron Lamme of 
Jefferson township, this county, when he began the battle of life for 
himself, became a farmer by both natural inclination and force of cir- 
cumstances. And it was entirely logical that he should, for there was 
nothing in his surroundings or within the range of his vision to create 
a temptation or an incentive to make him anything else. 

He has followed the pursuit in which he started through all his 
subsequent years, and has never regretted his choice. For he has been 
successful in his undertaking in a material way, and also by his skill 
and excellent judgment as a farmer has won a high reputation and 
established himself firmly in the regard and good will of the people 
around him, in whose welfare he has always taken a cordial and serv- 
iceable interest, and in whose behalf he has been at all times enterpris- 
ing and progressive. 

Mr, Lamme is a native of Linn county, born at Laclede in June, 
1871. His parents, Tilford and Sue (Garrett) Lamme, were born in 
Mercer county, Kentucky. The father was a druggist and farmer. 
He car&e to Missouri about 1860 and located at Laclede, where in com- 
pany with his father, Milton Lamme, he opened a drug store. He and 
his father also bought land in Linn and Chariton counties which rap- 
idly increased in value and made them very comfortable in a jvorldly 
way. The grandfather died at Laclede in 1872, the father in 1874 and 
the mother in 1876. Six children were born to Mr. Lamme 's parents, 
five sons and one daughter, all of whom are living, three of them in 
Linn county. Their grandfather, Milton Lamme, was an extensive 
planter and owned a large number of slaves in Kentucky. 

Byron Lamme was taken by his uncle, William Garrett, to a farm 
north of Linneus in his childhood, and was reared on that farm as a 
member of the uncle's family and attended school from there. At the 
age of twenty-five he began farming on his own account on the farm 




Uy^M E S y=V . M O O R 



HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 345 

which he now owns and occupies, and of which he has 400 acres under 
the plow. He has also, for a number of years, engaged in raising live 
stock extensively, and has so managed both departments of his indus- 
try as to make them bring him large returns for his labor and care. 
His farm has been enriched by him with good modern buildings of 
commodious size and convenient arrangement, and been made attrac- 
tive by judicious attention to appearances in the arrangement of trees, 
shrubbery and other adornments. It is easily one of the most valuable 
and pleasing country homes in the township. 

Mr. Lamme was married on December 21, 1892, to Miss Lillie 
Thorne, a daughter of Samuel Tliorne, an early arrival in Linn county. 
Three children have blessed the union and brightened the family circle, 
and they are all still living and in full enjoyment of the respect and 
good will of all who know them. They are: Thorne T., who is a 
student; and Mary F. and Eoy S. They are all yet members of the 
parental home and among its most admired attractions. The father is 
a Democrat in political faith and allegiance, but, while genuinely loyal 
to his party, he is not desirous, and never has been, of any of the honors 
or emoluments it has to bestow in the way of public office. Fraternally 
he is connected with the Order of Odd Fellows, and in church relations 
he is a Methodist. 



JAMES A. MOORE 

Having located in Linn county with his parents at the age of seven 
years, when the whole region was an unbroken wilderness, and having 
passed the remainder of his life to the present time in the county, 
actively connected with its industrial forces and zealous in the duties 
of citizenship, James A. Moore, of Brookfield, has witnessed every step 
of its transformation from its wild condition when he first knew it to 
its present high development and advanced improvement, and has 
borne his full share in the work of beginning, continuing and completing 
the great change. 

Mr. Moore is a native of Anderson county in the eastern part of 
Tennessee, where he was born on November 3, 1835. His grandfather, 
also named James Moore, was born in North Carolina and served 
valiantly in the Eevolutionary war. After the close of that momentous 
struggle for independence he moved to Tennessee and engaged in farm- 
ing. He died in Alabama at a good old age, having removed to that 
state some time before his death. He was of English ancestry, some 



346 HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 

of his forefathers having come to this country from England among 
the early colonial settlers, tl 

His son, Joseph T. Moore, the father of James A., was born in 
Alabama, on May 1, 1791, and was also a farmer in times of peace. But 
he too had a military spirit, and at the very dawn of his manhood 
obeyed his coimtry 's call to arms and took part in the War of 1812, pass- 
ing five years in the army. He was with General George R. Clarke at 
the capture of Vincennes, Indiana, and there received a slight wound 
in the shoulder. As a partial reward for his military services he was 
given a patent for 160 acres of land in Linn county, Missouri, by the 
government, but prior to receiving this he had married Miss Jane 
Pate, a native of Alabama. 

Mr. Moore, the elder, first came to Linn county in 1840 to locate his 
land, and in 1842 moved his family here, making the journey overland 
with horses and oxen and bringing their live stock along. Their first 
dwelling on the homestead was a tent, but it was not long before they 
built a log house to shelter them, and its curling columns of smoke 
arose in graceful motion, proclaiming to all who saw them that a new 
domestic altar had been erected in the wilderness and that it was at 
last hearkening to the call of civilization and preparing to put on the 
habiliments of a more advanced state of being and begin its march in 
the ranks of progress. 

His wife died in 1846, having been the mother of five sons and one 
daughter. Three of the sons are living. Sometime after the death of 
their mother the father contracted a second marriage, which united 
him with Miss Sophia Root and brought him four additional children. 
He served three terms as county judge of Linn county and filled several 
minor offices with great acceptability to the people, and was for many 
years a devout member of the Methodist Episcopal Church South. His 
death occurred in 1873, but before his life ended he had cleared his 
land and converted it into a valuable and highly productive farm 
enriched with good improvements. 

James A. Moore grew to manhood in the wilderness, helping his 
father to clear and cultivate the homestead, and remaining with him 
until he reached the age of twenty-three. His opportunities for school- 
ing were necessarily very limited, owing to the unsettled condition of 
the country. But Nature was his tutor and gave him lessons of self- 
reliance and resourcefulness, with readiness for all emergencies and 
adaptability to all the requirements of his situiation. At the age of 
twenty-three he bought a tract of wild land, which he cleared and 
improved, and on which he lived and prospered as a farmer until 1899, 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 347 

when he retired from active pursuits and moved to Brookfield to pass 
the remainder of his days in a well-earned rest. But he still superin- 
tends the operation of his farming industry and his live stock business, 
which have grown to great proportions. 

By purchases from time to time he has increased the extent of his 
land to 1,400 acres, a large part of which is under advanced cultivation; 
and his live stock industry, which was begun in 1862, has also expanded 
considerably. He raises and feeds numbers of cattle and sheep for 
the market and gives the business his close personal attention. In 
1904 he started a private bank in Brookfield, known as "The Moore 
Bank, ' ' which has flourished under his management and become one of 
the established and popular financial institutions of the city. 

On November 17th, 1858, Mr. Moore was united in marriage with 
Miss Sarah True, a native of Missouri. They have had four children : 
Nora, now the wife of Dr. Powers; Joseph, who is employed in his 
father's bank; Effie, the wife of C. H. Jones of Brookfield, and Beedler a" *** * ^ 
A., who has been dead for a number of years. Mrs. Moore is still living 
and enjoys the regard and good will of all who know her. She has given 
her community a fine example of domestic virtue and usefulness, and 
has been of great assistance to her husband in the accumulation of his 
estate. 

Following the examples of his father and his grandfather, Mr. 
Moore took part in the Civil war as a member of the state militia dur- 
ing that sanguinary conflict. He is not a member of any church or 
fraternity, but is an upright and true man in all the relations of life, 
and one of the most estimable and most esteemed citizens of the county. 
None stands higher in the public regard and none is more worthy of it. 



JASPER G. NEECE 

From his boyhood this estimable and highly respected citizen of 
Brookfield township has been engaged in farm work and no temptation 
has ever been strong enough to win him from it to any other pursuit. 
He was born on a farm and trained to its labors. He has found the 
life in the open always agreeable and invigorating, and even the most 
laborious duties of his calling followed by their compensations in one 
way or another, and he has felt no desire to relinquish them. Being 
devoted to his pursuit in this way, he has necessarily studied how to 
make it as pleasant and profitable to him as possible, and so has become 
one of the most progressive and enterprising farmers in his township. 



348 HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 

He was born in this county near Linneus on April 30, 1855, and 
is a son of Beverly and Sarah (McCormick) Neece, natives of Ken- 
tucky, where their families were domesticated for generations. The 
father was a blacksmith and for many years worked industriously at 
his trade. Later in life he became a farmer and abandoned the forge 
for all time. But he had been farming even while working at his trade. 
He was born on February 16, 1815, and while j'et a boy was taken by 
his parents to McDonough county, Illinois. 

There he grew to manhood and obtained a limited common schoal 
education. After leaving school he learned his trade, and early in his 
manhood moved to Missouri, arriving in what is now Linn county, and 
locating not far from the site of the present city of Linneus in the 
southern part of Sullivan county. He built the first blacksmith shop 
in Linneus and helped to clear the portions of the new born town which 
were laid out for streets. His later years, as has been noted, were 
passed on his farm, where he died in 1888. 

His widow is still living, far advanced in years but still vigorous 
and active, and in the locality of her home held in veneration by the 
people as a faithful wife and mother who bravely bore her part in the 
strenuous times of founding the county, settling the wilderness and 
helping to foster and cultivate the first sproutings of civilization, and 
as having exemplified through all her years the best traits of sterling 
American womanhood, faithful to her family, her community and 
every claim to her attention, useful in her own aetivitj^ and forceful 
in the example she has given, which has had its due effect on others. 

She and her husband were the parents of thirteen children, eight 
daughters and five sons, all of whom grew to maturity. Two of the 
sons and four of the daughters are living: John M., a resident of 
Brookfield ; Jasper G., the immediate subject of these paragraphs ; 
Ann C, the wife of J. T. Waller of McComb, Illinois ; Martha E., the 
wife of Joseph C. Gambill of Salem, Missouri; Sarah E., now Mrs. 
George Hanson of Monroe City, Missouri ; and Minerva C, the wife of 
Sanford Buck of Springdale, Arkansas. 

The father was county judge several terms, and also sheriff of 
the county. Afterward he represented the county in the lower house 
of the state legislature. He made a good record in each of these offices 
and won the lasting confidence and esteem of all the people. He was a 
Democrat in polities and a Baptist in religious affiliation, and a leading 
man in both his party and his church, taking an active part in the 
affairs of each and contributing to the success of all their efforts by his 



HISTOEY OF LIXN COUNTY 34c) 

rSret;'^'""- ""'' '''''-' ^-^^ ^--^ --> ">^« ^^-el, a native 

attended the country school in the neioVborhond oV 'f'"^''T ^e 

s 59'L- - — riri ~ 1? 

are living Mabel IITm t Z "'^ *'"'' "'"°"' ^°^^ of ^^om 

1910 Th'e f,rt ""^.^^^'y J- Their mother died on November 13 

WILLIAM P. BRINKLEY 

A man with a specialty in business or inrlnc+,... • i 

^ives unusual lalue to his operations. The products of hi., ^innh f. 

aTtetLlTlLff ''' ''TT^' - -nyltf iTdtfdi a^^ 
the marW, ' ^^™ °" ""^''^ ''^ •'■'^^'^^ «'^°» «"^1 raise, them for 



May g'lS^f J'hI'? "'"''' "^ ^'^y ^''^^'"P' ^''«'-« Ws life began on 
May 8 18/5, and he has passed nearly all of his subseqnent vearslithin 

Stance fn "he tow ^ ^^"'r'^ "' '"'''"""<=''" "'«"-«^ '^^^ "'- 
r^!! 1^ [ , township. He has also been of great service to the 

people m helping to improve their live stock and make i mo^e valnal e 
He IS a son of Alexander and Nannie (Withiw) Brinkl" in a sketch' 
of whom to be found elsewhere in th s volume the familVhW^- 
given at some length and with a recital of detaTs " "*"" '^ 

Ihe son was reared in Clay township and received his education at 
the state normal at Warrensburg, graduated at Spaldin^s Commei^ial 



350 HISTORY OF LINX COUNTY 

College, Kansas City, and took a course in agriculture at the State 
University. He is president of the Linn County Farmers ' Association 
and has acted as vice president of the State Corn Growers' Associa- 
tion. After leaving school he followed farming for a time, then passed 
two years in Kansas City in the coal and ice trade. But while his 
experience in trade was profitable and not disagreeable to him, he pre- 
ferred the line of industry to which he had been trained, and so he 
returned to his native heath and again became a farmer. He saw 
improvements in the business, or in connection with it, which he was 
eager to introduce, and he has been very successful in making them by 
adding the live stock business to his farming operations, and confining 
Ms work in this to the production of none but superior animals. His 
stock output has a high rank in the markets and is much sought after 
by dealers and private purchasers who wish to secure none but fine 
specimens of a good breed. 

Mr. Brinkley was married on April 7, 1897, to Miss Estella Luys- 
ter, a daughter of Houston and Margaret (Thorp) Luyster, an account 
of whose lives appears in this work. Four children have been born 
in the Brinkley household, all of whom are living. They are Lester L., 
Wilma F., Preston K. and Dorothy M., all of them still members of 
the parental family circle, and adding life and light to its attractions. 

Mr. Brinkley is a member of the Order of Modern Woodmen of 
America in fraternal relations and connected with the Methodist Epis- 
copal church in religious affiliation. He takes a cordial and helpful 
interest in his church and his fraternity, as he does in everything that 
he believes conducive to the welfare and comfort of the people around 
him. He is always ready to aid in promoting any commendable under- 
taking involving the substantial and enduring good of his township 
and county, or helpful in pushing forward their progress and improve- 
ment. He is regarded on all sides as a very progressive and useful 
citizen, and is highly esteemed for his genuine worth and the elevated 
manhood he exemplifies, which are creditable to the locality of his home 
and representative of the best elements in the citizenship of his 
community. 



JAMES W. BURCH 

Comfortably established on 253 acres of fine farm land, which he 
has enriched with good buildings and other improvements, and brought 
to a high state of productiveness by his enterprise and skill as a farmer, 
James W. Burcli of Brookfield township, this county, is in a position 



HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 351 

which would seem to be beyond the reach of adversity, and in which he 
only needs to continue his operations and prudent management to make 
himself still more secure and prosperous in a worldly way. 

Mr. Burch is a native of Gibson county, Indiana, where his life 
began on February 19, 1861. He is a son of John and Elizabeth (Nixon) 
Burch, an account of whose lives will be found in this work. Born a 
farmer's son, and seeking no other occupation than that of his father, 
the son was reared with his life work constantly in view, and took to 
his training for it with readiness and diligence. From boyhood he 
performed what he could of the labor on the farm, but not as a mere 
drudge, or as a matter of necessity. The work had an interest and a 
meaning for him which gave it attractiveness, and as he wrought he 
reflected and observed so as to become master of all the requirements 
of his calling. 

This disposition has attended him through life, and the application 
of it to whatever he has undertaken has been one of the sources of his 
success. His farm training was also a large part of his education, 
although he acquired such mental development and scholastic attain- 
ments as the subscription schools in the country during his boyhood 
could furnish. This was enough to prepare him for usefulness and 
enterprise as a farmer, and to give him such a mastery of the founda- 
tions of learning as were necessary for the proper management of his 
business and a creditable performance of the duties of citizenship, but 
not enough to tempt him away from his chosen sphere of activity, or 
make him dissatisfied with it. 

By judicious reading, observation and reflection he has greatly 
enlarged his knowledge and made himself a well informed man. It is 
but natural, under the circumstances, that he should take an earnest 
interest in the affairs of his township and county, educational, indus- 
trial, moral and political, and he has done so. Nothing of value that is 
undertaken for the welfare of the people or the proper progress and 
development of the region in which he lives ever goes without his active 
aid. His political faith is pledged and his political services are freely 
given to the Republican party, but he has never been desirous of any 
of its honors or emoluments for himself. He supports the party and 
its candidates because he believes in its principles, and without any 
direct regard for his own elevation in a public way, or his personal 
interests. 

On April 19, 1883, he was united in marriage with Miss Sarah Jane 
Prather, a daughter of Enos and Martha (Shirley) Prather, highly 
respected old settlers in Linn county. Six children have been born of 



352 HISTOEY OF LINX COUNTY 

the union, and all of them are living. They are : John, who is a resi- 
dent of Brookfield; Cleo, whose home is also in that city; Rex, who 
lives on a farm near his father's; and Gladine, Samuel and Ruth, all of 
whom are still members of the parental family circle. Like their par- 
ents, the sons and daughters of the household are worthy members of 
the community and held in high regard and good will by the people. 
They are attentive to every duty and representative of the most sturdy 
and sterling citizenship of the county, with aspirations toward the best 
ideals and zealous efforts to reach them in every line of life in which 
they are employed or interested. 



SAMUEL H. BURCH 

The son of a valiant soldier who fought courageously in defense of 
the Union in the midst of unrolling columns on many a bloody battle- 
field of the Civil War, and who carried the marks of his service through 
all the subsequent years of his life, sometimes painfully but always 
proudly, Samuel H. Burch had an inspiration for his patriotism and 
devotion to his country ever present at his paternal fireside, and its 
influence still abides with him. He has never himself been anything 
but a farmer and first-rate citizen, but in those lines of activity and 
usefulness he has exemplified, amid the pursuits of peaceful industry, 
the same qualities of manly worth and fidelity to duty that his father 
showed so well on the gory fields of sectional and fratricidal strife. 

Mr. Burch was born in Pike county, Indiana, on October 24, 1856. 
His parents were John and Elizabeth (Nixon) Burch, the former a 
native of the state of New York and the latter of Kentuck\^ The 
father's life began in Onondaga county. New Y'ork, in 1831, and in 
1842, when he was eleven years old, the family moved to Indiana and 
located in Pike county. He grew to manhood in that county and 
remained there until 1866, except while he was in the Union army dur- 
ing the Civil War, In 1861, soon after the beginning of that momen- 
tous conflict, he enlisted in Company I, Forty-second Indiana Volunteer 
Infantry, and in that company he served to the close of the war, enter- 
ing the service as a private and being mustered out with the rank of 
captain, which he secured by gallantry on the field. 

His regiment was a part of the great fighting force of General 
Thomas, and each member of it seemed to catch the spirit of that great 
soldier and renowned commander. Mr. Burch took part in all the 
battles of that army while he was free to do so, including the deluge 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 053 

being taken prisoner and confinPrt n tZ ' '^^^''"''' ^^ ^'^ 

even as it wa\ he wariltdl 4 SdrnW htT.r-r ^"* 
languished in the terrible military prison tLthT . T""^' ^^ 

one .the reeord-.a.ers o. ^el^'Z^^^^^^^^^ 

fine and fruitful farm, living oTitu^uLYZblXstT 't " 
l.ved there two years longer, and died in 1886 Ti'Z tef hiTdr"" 
SIX of whom are living • Ira J a rp«irlanf ^f +i . children, 

of Linneus; Thomas A., an esteemed ei izen o e' p!so Texff T:? 
John, whose home is in Chillieothe, Missouri ' ' """^ 

was ^'T:^:^T^;:^'^^^:^^f^^^<^, r'r -'^ 

legislature. Prater,,ally he wa' a Freema oT Thr^' T .''''" 
post at Eversonville was named Jol n Burei: iu his hoi. '7 

Sr t:!tc^i:s:'-^-:^ "^ M^th^^LXLopl" 

™n. and was untrrX^t'SsTcr''"''' '"'"^^^"' ^"^ «^"-"« 

n.o.e"dio^M^stH :;,f .xtnrer:r °^^f r "^ r '^ 

preparatory scholastic training as tl e t me Ind faoUW "77"^ ^'^'^ 

After leaving that institution hf Lug t'lolw formal school, 
.eaving that oecupation has give^ Kolfa nt /rSr^t^'i: 

.rounds aL <^^::i::lr'i ^"^^j^tt 2:ri;ir^"-^"'!i 
rrr:Ce«nd=r^ - -er.~g^:?tr=s 

aauf r^rctrL^d^tariTS'stl^^ ptell ^ T' ^ 
resii ted from the iiTiimT «ii ^^ i, ^"^ ^^^\.^^.^^^^t. i^ive children have 



354 HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 

feeding and handling for the markets a large number of cattle. He 
belongs to the Methodist Episcopal church, and is a member of the 
Order of Modern Woodmen of America. 



JOHN H. BROWN 



Actively engaged in farming in Linn county for the last thirty 
years, and an extensive operator in rearing and feeding live stock for 
the markets during the last twenty, John H. Brown, of Locust Creek 
township, has been a valuable contributor to the industrial activity 
and commercial importance of the county for almost a generation of 
human life. While he has prospered in his business and accumulated 
a comfortable estate, he has also made his operations tell to the ad- 
vantage of the county, and has freely given his own time, attention and 
energy to aid in the great work of developing its resources and im- 
proving the conditions of life for all its people. 

Mr. Brown is not a native of the county, and reached his estate 
of full manhood some years before he became a resident of it. But he 
is none the less loyal to its interests or zealous in seeking to promote 
its welfare than he would have been if he had been born within its 
limits and drawn his stature and his strength from its soil. His life 
began on a farm in the adjoining county of Macon, and not far from 
its county seat, on March 16, 1856, where his parents, Isaac and Irene 
(Taylor) Brown, were then living and carrying on general farming 
operations. 

The father was born near Shelbyville, Kentucky, and for some 
years after reaching his maturity was engaged in farming in his native 
state. He moved to Missouri and located in Macon county in 1851, 
and there he passed the remainder of his days, dying in the spring of 
1861. At the time of his death he owned a farm of 160 acres, and as 
the land was fertile and responsive, and he cultivated it with energy 
and skill, he prospered in his undertaking and accumulated a comfort- 
able competency. 

His son John was reared and received a district schol education in 
Macon county, meanwhile obtaining valuable knowledge of his des- 
tined pursuit in life by practical experience in the work of his father's 
farm. For some years after leaving school he remained at home and 
assisted his father in the farm labors, then for a time farmed on his 
own account in his native county. In March, 1881, he moved to Linn 
county and bought eighty acres of good land, the nucleus of his pres- 



HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 355 

ent farm, and gave all his energies to its improvement and cultivation. 
He was successful from the start, because he applied assiduous indus- 
try and advanced intelligence to his work and management, and as 
he made headway he bought additional land, until he now owns 356 
acres, and all of excellent quality for general farming and the rearing 
of live stock. 

Mr. Brown has been alert and energetic in using all the means at 
his comamnd to quicken and enlarge his progress. As a means to this 
end, about twenty years ago he began to raise and feed cattle for the 
markets. In this department of his industry he has also enlarged his 
operations from a small beginning until he now ships two carloads 
of superior cattle to the great marts of trade nearly every year. He is 
careful in every step of the process of preparing his cattle for con- 
sumption, and they have a high rank in the markets because of the 
fine condition in which they arrive and their superiority to the ordi- 
nary run in many ways. 

On December 18, 1882, Mr. Brown was married to Miss Gillie Ann 
Bunch. They have had ten children, seven of whom are living: Harrj^ 
who is in the employ of the government and lives in Washington, 
1). C. ; Walter R., who resides on a farm of his own east of his father's; 
Charles M. ; and Lola, who is a school teacher and makes her home 
with her parents; and Clessie P., Herman D., and Stanley J., all of 
whom are still dwelling at home under the parental rooftree. The 
father has always taken an earnest interest in the affairs of the county, 
but has never sought or desired a political office. He belongs to the 
Modern Woodmen of America and is a devoted and consistent member 
of the Christian Church. 



CLAYTON HENRY McCORMICK 

'* Zealous to soar but never roam, true to the kindred points of 
Heaven and Home," Clayton H. McCormick, one of the prosperous 
and progressive farmers of Linn county, admirably located on 160 
acres of productive land in Locust Creek township, is like the skylark 
in his aspirations and endeavors, and like it too in contentment with 
his lot in life. No temptation has been sufficient to lure him from 
his chosen occupation, and no showy promise of more rapid advance- 
ment has made him dissatisfied with it. Having put his hand to the 
plow in early life, he has never looked back or even sideways, but has 



356 HISTOEY OF LINX COUNTY 

kept straight ahead, working out his own prosperity and steadfastly 
maintaining his independence. 

Mr, McCormick is a native of Waushara county, "Wisconsin, where 
his life began on October 14, 1860, and a son of Matthew and Mary 
(Crandall) McCormick. The father was born in Lewis county, New 
York, in 1829, and remained there until he reached the age of fourteen. 
He then took up the battle of life for himself by leaving home and 
going to work on the Erie canal. In that service he was employed 
until he was twenty-one or twenty-two years old, and when he was 
about twenty-four, moved to Wisconsin and turned his attention to 
farming. 

In Wisconsin he founded his household and reared his domestic 
altar, remaining in the state about eight years. In 1866 he moved his 
family to Missouri and located in Linn county not far from St. 
Catharine. A few years later he moved to a farm some six miles north 
of Brookfield, where he passed the remainder of his life, dying on 
August 10, 1891. His wife died July 4, 1901. He was a valiant Union 
soldier during the Civil War, serving in a Wisconsin regiment, and 
showed his mettle on some of its bloodiest battlefields. He was in the 
Battle of Nashville, Tennessee, and a number of small engagements. 

Clayton H. McCormick was brought to Missouri when he was but 
six years old, and gTew to manhood in the locality of his present 
residence. He obtained all the scholastic training he ever got at Linn 
Center School, one of the humble but effective country institutions 
of learning which dot our country plentifully in all parts and form one 
of the great bulwarks for the protection of the republic under whose 
benign influence we live. In this neighborhood he has followed farm- 
ing from his youth, and during the last fifteen years has also been ex- 
tensively engaged in rearing and feeding cattle for the markets. By 
his industry, intelligence and progressiveness in the management of 
his business he has thriven in both lines of his enterprise, and made 
his way slowly but surely to comfort and consequence in the way of 
a worldly estate. His farm comprises 160 acres of land, which he has 
improved with good buildings and brought to a high state of pro- 
ductiveness, making it one of the most attractive and valuable rural 
homes in the township in which it is located. 

On March 22, 1886, he was married to Miss Allie England, a 
daughter of George and Jane (Bradshaw) England, old settlers who 
moved into Linn county in 1867. Two children have been born in the 
McCormick household, only one of whom is living, a son named Claude 
Ernest, who still has his home with his parents. He was graduated 



HISTOEY OF LIN^T COUNTY 357 

from tlie Brookfield liigh school with second honors in 1909 and is 
novv pursuing a course in civil engineering in the State University at 
ColuKLbia. No family in the township stands higher in the regard of 
the whole people than this one, and all its members richly deserve the 
favor with which their neighbors and friends look upon them, for they 
are citizens of the most sterling type, and true to every interest of 
their time and locality. 

ROBERT BARKLEY LAMBERT 

One of the largest landholders of Linn county, and one of its 
most extensive and prosperous farmers and stock dealers, Robert B 
Lambert of Locust Creek township, occupies a prominent position 
among the people on account of the extent of his possessions and the 
magmtude of his business. But he is also prominent among them be- 
cause of his high character, public spirit, enterprise and progressive- 
ness m behalf of the improvement of his township and county and his 
energetic and effective services in promoting the general welfare of 
the section and its inhabitants in every way. 

Although not a native of Linn county or Missouri, Mr. Lambert 
has lived m the county ever since he was three years old, and has no 
recollection of any other home. He was born in Washington county, 
Ohio, on September 29, 1862, and is a son of Barkley and Asenath 
(Jl^dgerton) Lambert, also natives of Ohio. The father's life began in 
Belmont county, Ohio, on November 4, 1822, and he was reared and 
educated there. After reaching manhood he engaged in farming and 
merchandising m his native state until 1865, when he came to Missouri 
and established a residence in Sullivan countv. Four years later he 
moved to another farm about six miles north of Brookfield, where he 
remained until his death. All the years of his mature life were passed 
m general farming, and wherever he lived he manifested a cordial in- 
terest m the good and progress of his community. Before he left Ohio 
he served in the Home Guards during the closing vear of the Civil 
War. His parents were Abner and Elizabeth Lambert. 

Robert B. Lambert was, as has been stated, but three years old 
when his parents moved to Linn county, and here he grew to manhood 
and obtained his education. All his social training was acquired by 
association with the people of the county, and all his business enter- 
prises have been conducted in their midst. He is therefore altogether 
a Missourian in everything but birth, and as loyal in his devot'ion to 



358 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

the well being of Ms adopted state as he ever could have been to that 
of the state of his nativity. 

Mr. Lambert has been continuously engaged in farming from his 
youth. He has conducted his operations with energy and skill, and 
has made them pay excellent returns for the intelligence and labor he 
has applied to them, and as he has prospered has steadily enlarged 
them.. He now owns and cultivates 927 acres of land, all lying north 
of Brookfield. One body of the farm includes all of Section 11, the 
west half of the northeast quarter of Section 14, the northwest quarter 
of Section 12, and fifty acres off of the west side of the west half of 
the northeast quarter of Section 12, all in township 58, Eange 20, and 
the rest is in other tracts. 

During the last twenty-seven years Mr. Lambert has also been 
actively and profitably engaged in buying, rearing and shipping cattle. 
He began with one carload the first year, and gradually enlarged his 
live stock business until he now averages about twenty carloads an- 
nually, and during the last five years he has fed on an average 250 
head a year. This is extensive dealing, but he manages it with ease, 
so ,complete is his system of operating and so comprehensive and 
masterly is his business capacity. 

He was married on December 21, 1881, to Miss Mary Louisa Case. 
They have had eight children, five of whom are living: Lillie May, 
who is still at home with her parents; Roy J., who resides on his own 
farm of 208 acres one mile and three-quarters west of Brookfield; 
Ernest Oliver, aged eighteen, who is also still at home, as are Floyd 
Earl, aged sixteen, and Gladys Viola. The oldest son, Roy J., was 
married on February 13, 1910, to Miss Mary J. Booth, a native of 
Missouri, and at the time of her marriage living in Brookfield, Linn 
county, Missouri. 

For a continuous period of forty-six years Mr. Lambert has lived, 
boy and man, in Linn county, and during considerably more than half 
of the time has been a large factor in its industrial strength and com- 
mercial power and influence. He has taken an active and serviceable 
interest in its public affairs, although he is not an active partisan 
politically, and has been also a potential factor in the work of develop- 
ing its resources and improving the condition of its people. His 
efforts in aiding every worthy undertaking for the benefit of the 
county have not been half-hearted or niggardly, but energetic, earnest 
and full of effectiveness. But he has wrought in this behalf with judg- 
ment and intelligence, and all his force has been directed along lines 
of wholesome progress and enduring good. He can always be de- 



HISTORY OF LIXN COUNTY 



pended on to give wise counsel, and also energetic action, when the 
enterprise proposed meets with his approval, and to point oS he 
weakness and nnworthiness of any that do not. Linn county hi no 
bet er or more helpful citizen, and none whom the people hold in 
higher esteem for elevation of character, uprightness of Hf'^ 'turd fne s 
of citizenship and all the other traits of sterling American manhood 
The parents are members of Methodist Church South 



WILLIAM JEPFEESON BAKER 

Rr. iV'irf"'"''^? ^^^ °P*^'''i««"^ of his fine farm of 177 acres in 
BrooMeld township and carrying on his extensive busines in buying 
and shipping hve stock, William J. Baker finds plenty to ocup/m! 
time and at enfon and satisfy all his desires in the way of emnlov 
ment. He gives the public affairs of the township and couu yTll the" 
consideration and service good citizenship requires, but he has iefer 

Mr. Baker was born, reared and educated in Linn county He has 

whole of his life to this time (1912) actively engaged in two of its 
leading industries. He is therefore a fair representat ve of Us sturdv 
and ster ing citizenship, and of the reliable factors which make up the 

mr n ^Z' tdaT '"d '^^^ "^°"f * '*"* "^ ^^«^' progresf deTel p! 
ment and Indus iia and commercial strength. His life began on May 

S/co' lumT bIT ti 7' '^"' "" " ^ """ "' George ^and Isabel 

and th. iZ fr ' °™*"' " "''"™ "^ S™^^° ^o^-^ty. Indiana, 

and the latter of Linn county, Missouri. 

The father was born on July 1, 1837, not far from the city of 
Morgantown, in the Hoosier state, and throughout all the ^"ars of hi, 
activity, except during the Civil War, was Tndustrl /engaged t 
farming. In the terrific sectional strife which came near rendinfour 
country assunder he shouldered his musket and val ant ;'"! M 

full ylais! " ^"^^°*'''' '""^ •■^'"=''°'"S ^° "^^ ^«'"«« four 

He first came to Linn county in 1849 and located on a farm in thi, 

county near North Salem. After the war he returned to that W^ 



360 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

and until recently gave liis whole attention to its cultivation and 
improvement. He is now living in Brookfield retired from active 
pursuits. He has always manifested an earnest interest in the welfare 
of the county and taken an active and serviceable part in promoting 
its progress and improvement. In politics he is a pronounced Repub- 
lican, and always zealous and energetic in the service of his party, 
but never with a view to securing any office for himself, even in his 
days of greatest activity and effectiveness. 

Stephen McCollum, Mr. Baker's grandfather on his mother's side, 
was one of the pioneers of Linn county, and lived northeast of St. 
Catharine, where he owned about 400 acres of land. During the Civil 
War he warmly espoused the cause of the Southern Confederacy and 
gave two of his sons to its armies to fight in defense of what he be- 
lieved in. He was a devoted admirer of Jefferson Davis, and made it 
a point to have as many as possible of his grand children named in 
honor of that distinguished but unfortunate statesman and leader of 
a cause that was doomed to defeat at its very start. 

William J. Baker, as has been stated, was reared and educated 
in this county, and lias been continuously engaged in farming from 
the time when he left school. For about fifteen years he also carried 
on an extensive business in breeding and feeding cattle for the 
markets, and during the last three has given his attention largely to 
buying and shipping live stock in general. He has always given close 
attention to political matters in the county, but only with a view to 
securing the best results for the benefit of the people, and with no 
reference to his own prominence, special personal advantage, or selec- 
tion for official station of any kind, for this he has never desired. He 
has also been strong in his support of all commendable projects de- 
signed to promote the progress and improvement of the county, the 
development of its resources, or the mental, moral or material welfare 
of its people in any way. 

On December 25, 1882, Mr. Baker was married to Miss Margaret 
Fosher, a daughter of Harrison and Margaret (Hays) Fosher, old 
settlers of Linn county. Six children were born of the union, all of 
whom are living. They are: Curtis C, who resides on a farm near 
Brookfield; Daisy A., who is the wife of T. D. Robinson, of Kosh- 
konong, Oregon county, in this state; Roy E., who also lives on a farm 
near Brookfield; and Fred E., Nellie and William H., who are still 
living at home with their father. 

The mother of these children died on April 21, 1895, and on 
November 9, 1898, the father contracted a second marriage, uniting 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 361 

liimself on this occasion with Miss Nnra M t5,, i i . 

David S. and BinCa (Coolc, Buth ato'esI^eToVtirf'of thif 

son and rXi, t, f "' ^''''' ^'■'°<'' ^'""^ ^ay, Martin Jeffer- 



ROBERT W. DAVIS 

(Deceased) 

the ttvHl r/r '' *i"''' ' •"'' '""^ '*'" ^^^^^ o* ''i^ ''f« tl'is veteran of 
Rrlvr ,7r. P^^i^'nent real estate dealer and insurance a«ent of 
Brookfield had a varied and interesting experience Ke l,!f K 

tage and the benefit of the various communities in which his aetiviH^, 
had been exerted, and he boldly faced death on some of the blood, 

men td r ''"%"<^t"^' '''''''' '" ^'-" '"«'' Principes of govern- 
ment and human freedom were involved. In every line of endeavor 

Lt:i-s^3r^:^ "''"'•«•- -''-'^^^^^^^ 

mi9^''I^^^'! T^ ''°™ '° '^**^'' ''°°°ty' New York, on October 4 

and busan (Williams) Davis, also natives of the state of New York 

publi fTof Ms%:"'"r"'-''^' '"™^^- ""^ -- P™---' i^tt 
PUD1«. lite of his township m his native county, and filled manv of 

whot'rfhtr;"'" '" ''"."'' '''' '"'''^''^'^ *° «- townshrp ^Th 
Wm t ' '"T ^'^'""^ '" '"' °''*^™ ^tate and he died there in 

Thfv" " T ' '" '^'^'^ '" "^"' ^"'*^' P-«i"«' away in 1906 
Rober T V "f ■'"*' "^ '^-^ <^''"<^'''"' thr«« of ^I'om are living 
death The"^ot ' ""'■■ °°n '■'"'''"^ '" "'^^°"" ^t «- time of S 

nected wUh the Oi" "'" "'"^ ""•' ' '^'^^'-a'-^' "' C^Wna and con- 
nected with the Chinese government in an official capaoitv; Charles M 
who ,s a farmer in Oneida county. New York; and HenrV E who i« 
also a resident of New York state. Their paternal grandfatiieTwa 

cZ?;: th:r:'taV""r '',''T ''°^'^ "■•^ ^ Pioneerfarmer l; L:^; 
nrSnTra : ettj''^'"*' '''' '-' ^"^ '^ '-« "^«^ "^ <i"igent labor 



362 HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 

Robert W. Davis was reared in Oneida county, New York, and 
educated in the schools of Rome in that county. In August, 1863, 
when he was not yet of age, he enlisted in Company B, One Hundred 
and Forty-sixth New York Volunteer Infantry, for the remainder of 
the Civil War, which was then at the height of its fierceness and fury. 
His regiment was known as the Fifth Oneida, and became part of the 
Fifth Corps of the Army of the Potomac, under the command of Gen- 
eral Meade. 

Mr. Davis took part in numerous engagements which led up to the 
terrible battle of the Wilderness in Virginia. In the awful carnage of 
that battle he was shot through the groin, and the wound disabled him 
for further active service during the war. For a number of years 
after the close of the momentous contest he was a cripple. He was 
formally discharged from the army in June, 1865, and immediately 
returned to his home in Oneida county. New York. There he engaged 
in contracting and building until 1880, and part of the time was super- 
intendent of bridges on the Erie canal in the employ of the state of 
New York, with duties ranging from Albany to Buffalo. 

In 1880 the persuasive voice of the great undeveloped West had 
potency with him and he came to Missouri, locating in Brookfield. He 
bought a farm north of the city and during the next six years followed 
farming with sedulous attention to all the requirements of his calling, 
and since then was also extensively engaged in buying, feeding and 
shipping live stock, and dealing in real estate and life insurance. In 
addition he was one of the founders of the Brookfield Paving Brick 
Company, and was a stockholder and one of the directors of the Linn 
County Bank, a financial institution of acknowledged strength. In 
politics he was a pronounced Republican, and while living in New 
York was very active in the service of his party. 

Mr. Davis was married three times. His first wife, whom he mar- 
ried in 1867, died in 1871. In 1873 he was united with Miss Helen E. 
Clarke, a daughter of A. 0. and Fannie (Holloway) Clarke. This 
union resulted in the birth of two children, both of whom are living. 
They are: Mabel F., the wife of Leon R. Lane, of Topeka, Kansas, 
and Albert C, a resident of Tulsa, Oklahoma. Their mother died 
in 1891, and in 1894 the father married his last wife, whose maiden 
name was Katharine Roberts. They had five children: Robert V., 
Helen, Louise, Frances and Theodore, all of whom are living at home 
with their mother, and adding life, light and warmth to the family 
circle. 

The father was a member of the Grand Army of the Republic 





cX^f^ 




HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 363 

and commander of the post at the time of his death. His last service 
was the day before his death, when he was in command of the post on 
Memorial Day at Brookfield and marched with his old comrades for 
the last time. He was an enthusiastic Freemason of the Knights Tem- 
plar degree. Although not to the manner of Missourians born, he 
readily adapted himself to his surroundings and the ways and aspira- 
tions of the people, and became as one of them. He had shown an intel- 
ligent and helpful interest in their welfare and done what he could to 
promote it, and had won their full confidence and esteem by his high 
character, sterling manhood and wide-awake and serviceable citizen- 
ship. Missouri was to him all that New York ever was, and he was to 
Missouri all he ever was or could have been to New York in the value 
of his devotion to the common weal of the state and his contributions 
to its advancement. 



ZACHARY T. STANDLY, M. D. 

This eminent physician and surgeon has been actively engaged in 
the practice of his profession for forty-two years, and all of the time 
has made Laclede, Jefferson township, his home and base of operations. 
He is the oldest physician in continuous practice in Linn county, and 
one of the county's most estimable, influential and respected citizens. 
By long service to the people, in which he has shown great skill and 
mastery in his profession he has risen to the first rank in it. By ear- 
nest devotion to the interests of his township and county he has won 
popular approval universal in extent and of the highest degree in char- 
acter. And by his genial nature, obliging disposition and fine social 
qualities he has endeared himself to the people around him as few men 
ever do anywhere. 

Dr. Standly was born near Paris, Edgar county, Illinois, on Janu- 
ary 13, 1847, and is a son of Richard and Catherine (Bullock) Standly, 
both natives of eastern Tennessee. The father was born in 1812, and 
moved to Illinois in 1840, locating in Edgar county, near Paris, the 
county seat, where he passed the remainder of his life busily engaged 
in profitable farming. He died in October, 1869, of injuries received in 
a run-away accident, his team having become frightened and getting 
beyond his control. The mother died just one month before his tragic 
end came, in September, 1869. 

The doctor's early life was passed on his father's farm and in the 
enjoyment of the educational facilities of his neighborhood. He after- 
ward attended the Edgar Academy in Paris, and there completed his 



364 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

academic education. Soon afterward, having determined to make the 
practice of medicine and surgery his work for life, he began prepara- 
tion for the profession by private reading under the direction of a judi- 
cious tutor. After spending some months on this plan he passed the 
year 1867-8 as a student in the medical department of the University 
of Michigan at Ann Arbor in that state, and the next year attended 
Eush Medical College, in Chicago, from which he was graduated with 
the degree of M. D. in February, 1870. 

From the college he came at once to Laclede to practice his pro- 
fession, having selected that town as his location with all the country 
from which to make a choice. All the years of his subsequent life have 
been passed in that town, and his success as a physician and the high 
regard he enjoys as a man and citizen prove that his choice was wisely 
made. But the results of his residence here prove that he would have 
done well anywhere, as he possessed within him the qualities which 
always command success. He soon had a good practice, and in 1880 
was able to embark with other persons in the drug trade under the 
firm name of Markham & Company. 

One of the elements in the case which had its bearing in directing 
his energies was the fact that on his arrival at Laclede the doctor had 
but twenty dollars in cash capital, all told, and his only other stock in 
trade was his professional education, which was to be governed and 
guided by a will and a spirit of energy that had stricken the word 
"fail" out of his lexicon. For some years he devoted himself wholly 
to his profession, then, as he made progress in a worldly way in that, 
he gave attention to other sources of revenue and usefulness, and made 
them also beneficial to the community and profitable to himself. 

His first venture in business outside of his profession was in the 
drug trade, as has been noted. He is now president of the banking 
company of Lomax & Standly in Laclede, a director of the Central 
States Life Insurance Company of St. Louis, and president of the 
Laclede Electric Light Company, which was recently organized and of 
which he was one of the principal and most energetic promoters. He 
is also connected with other institutions of value to the community, and 
is always earnestly and effectively interested in every project invohdng 
its substantial welfare and wholesome progress, morally, intellectually, 
socially and materially. 

It is to be understood, however, that Dr. Standly 's attention to 
these side lines in business has never lessened his devotion to his pro- 
fession or his industry and zeal in performing the duties belonging to 
it. He has kept up his active practice without regard to his personal 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 365 

comfort or convenience, and it has kept pace with his diligent attention 
to it. He has been the surgeon at Laclede for the Bnrlington railroad 
system during all of the last twenty-five years, and has also been an 
industrious and thoughtful student of the best medical literature, and 
an active member of the State Medical Society and the American Med- 
ical Association. 

The doctor has taken a cordial interest in the fraternal life of his 
community for many years. He belongs to the Masonic Order, the 
Order of Elks, the Order of Odd Fellows and the Order of Woodmen, 
and his membership in each is highly valued by its other members. 
Church affairs have also had a large share of his service, he having 
been an active, working member of the Methodist Episcopal church for 
thirty-nine years. On June 2, 1872, he was united in marriage with 
Miss Jennie Vance, who was of the same nativity as himself. They 
had three children, two of whom are living: Their daughter Catherine 
v., now Mrs. Walter Brownlee, who was a practicing physician in 
Brookfield, and their son Horace M., who is a resident of Mojave, Cali- 
fornia. The mother of these children died on June 7, 1882, and on May 
1, 1895, the doctor was married again, uniting himself with Miss Ella 
B. Griffin of Glidden, Iowa. Of this marriage one child has been born, 
a son named Harold G., who is still living at home with his parents. 



HENRY J. WEST 



In the prime of his manhood, with all his faculties alert and active, 
well educated academically, ambitious for a high rank in his profession 
and eager for advancement, Henry J. West, junior member of the law 
firm of Bresnehen & West, is one of the most promising lawyers in this 
part of Missouri. He already has high standing at the bar and in the 
esteem of the people as a man and citizen, but nothing short of the best 
he can attain to will satisfy him or meet the expectations of his host 
of confident and admiring friends, who have watched his career with 
cordial interest. 

Mr. West is a native of this county and was born on a farm north- 
west of Linneus on December 31, 1873. His parents, Robert N. and 
Susan K. (Mills) West, were born and reared in Washington county, 
Pennsylvania. The father moved to Putnam county, Illinois, early in 
his manhood and lived there until about 1870, then came to Missouri 
and took up his residence in this eoiiTitv. He was a farmer and fol- 
lowed his occupation in the neighborhood of Linneus until 1892. He 



366 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

then moved to Oklahoma and afterward to Rockyford, Colorado, where 
he retired from active pursuits, enjoying the rest he had so richly 
earned and the comfortable estate he had accumulated by his industry 
and good management until his death which occurred on February 29, 
1912. 

In politics he was always a Democrat but never an office-seeker. 
He and his wife were the parents of eight children, three of whom died 
in infancy and one, Harry K. West, a sketch of whose life will be found 
in this work, on June 16, 1907, at the age of forty-seven years. The 
other four are living, but the subject of this brief review is the only 
one of them who resides in Linn county. The paternal grandfather, 
Eli Mills, was a Pennsylvania Quaker and one of the early settlers of 
Illinois. 

Henry J. West grew to manhood in this county and began his 
scholastic training in its district schools. He afterward attended 
Missouri Wesleyan College at Cameron, this state, and after leaving, 
that institution taught school two years. But he had aspirations 
toward professional life and began the study of law under the direction 
of his brother Harry K. West, at Marceline as soon as he was through 
with his second year of teaching. He was admitted to the bar in June, 
1895, and for a time practiced at Marceline, then, until 1907, at Keytes- 
ville in Chariton county, always rising in professional rank and grow- 
ing into enlarged popularity and esteem among the people. 

On the death of his brother, Harry K. West, in June, 1907, he 
moved to Brookfield and took the place in the firm of Bresnehen & 
West which his brother had occupied. While living in Keytesville he 
served as mayor of that city, and gave it an administration yet highly 
commended by its inhabitants, pushing forward every work of merit 
in the way of public improvement and carefully looking after every 
interest of the people and every means of progress for the community. 

When the Spanish- American War began he was fired with patriotic 
zeal and enlisted in the service of his country in Company A, Sixth 
Missouri Volunteer Infantry, and was soon afterward commissioned 
second lieutenant. He remained in the service ten" months, his enroll- 
ment taking place in July, 1898, and performed his duty with admira- 
ble devotion to all its requirements. During a portion of the time his 
regiment was on guard duty in Havana, and did excellent work for that 
city in helping to improve its sanitary condition and promote its gen- 
eral welfare. 

When the regiment was mustered out of the service Mr. West 
returned to his home in Missouri, and on October 18, 1899, was united 



HISTORY or LINiNT COUNTY 367 

in marriage with Miss Grace C. Egan, a resident of Keytesville, who 
now presides over their hospitable home in Brookfield with a grace and 
genuine consideration for all their friends which make it one of the 
attractive social resorts of the city and a fine representative of Missouri 
domestic life. 

In partisan politics Mr. West is a pronounced Democrat and one 
of the effective and most liighly valued workers for the welfare of his 
party. He has not sought a political office of any kind, however, as his 
professional work fully satisfies his desires and absorbs his time to 
the exclusion of other lines of endeavor except those which his public 
spirit leads him to engage in and the social claims of the community, to 
which he is always cheerfully and helpfully responsive. His fraternal 
connection is with the Order of Elks, of which he is an enthusiastic 
and valued member. 



DR. ROBERT HALEY 

This eminent physician and surgeon, who is well and favorably 
known in all parts of Missouri, and is everywhere held in the highest 
esteem, was born in Ontario, Canada, on April 12, 1859, but has lived 
in Missouri since 1868 and in Brookfield since 1884. He may there- 
fore be called a product of Missouri without impropriety, inasmuch as 
nearly the whole of his life has been passed in the state, and he 
received his education, professional training and social tastes and 
habits among its people. 

The doctor's parents, James and Mary (Hawkens) Haley, were 
natives of Canada also, but were born in the province of New Bruns- 
wick, where their ancestors settled on their arrival in this continent 
froni Ireland and Scotland, the families having been domesticated in 
that country for many generations. The father was a farmer, and, 
after a residence of some years in Ontario, brought his family to Mis- 
souri, locating near Marceline in this county, in 1868. He took up a 
tract of wild land and improved it into a highly productive farm, 
which he cultivated until his death in 1877. He had been a sailor 
during his residence in New Brunswick, and followed the sea for a 
number of years. His wife died in Canada in 1867. They were the 
parents of a large number of children, but six of whom are living. 

Dr. Haley reached his manhood and obtained the greater part of 
his academic education in Linn county, but for this attended only the 
public schools. He began the study of medicine in the office of Dr. 
E. J. Cantwell of Marceline in 1877, and later continued it under the 



36g HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 

direction of Dr. J. D. Smith, surgeon for the Chicago, Burlington & 
Quincy Railroad in St. Joseph, remaining with him one year. He 
then attended the Hospital Medical College in St. Joseph, and was 
graduated from that institution in 1881. He was not satisfied with 
his preparation, however, and pursued a full course of medical study 
at the St. Louis Medical College, from which he was graduated in 
1884, with the degree of M. D. 

He at once located in Brookfield and began the practice of his 
profession, and during all the subsequent years he has continued it 
with steadily increasing patronage and higher standing as a physician 
and a man in the estimation of the public. He has ever been pro- 
gressive and zealously studious in his work. In 1893 he took a post 
graduate course at the Polyclinic Medical School in Chicago, and in 
1895 another at the Post Graduate College in New York city. The 
doctor is a specialist in diseases of the eye, ear, nose and throat, and 
with a view to perfecting himself in knowledge for this line of prac- 
tice he attended the Polyclinic Institute in New Orleans during the 
winter of 1904-5. 

Dr. Haley uses all the means at his command to keep himself 
posted in his profession and abreast of its latest thought and dis- 
coveries. He has served as president and has long been a member 
of the Linn County Medical Society and the North Missouri Medical 
Association. He is also a member of the Grand River District Medical 
Society a nd its treasurer, and has served as its president. In the pro- 
ceedings of these organizations he takes an active part both in seeking 
and in imparting information, and does all he can to make their work 
as valuable to their members as possible. He is also a member of the 
American Medical and Missouri State Medical Associations. 

In politics the doctor is a pronounced Democrat and fervently 
loyal to his party. He is one of its energetic and effective workers in 
this county, and has weight and influence in its councils throughout 
the state. In 1900 he was a delegate to the national Democratic con- 
vention and an enthusiastic supporter of Mr. Bryan for his second 
nomination for the presidency. He has served as chairman of the 
coi:inty central committee of the party, and has proven himself to be 
a very judicious leader and eifective organizer. Fraternally he is 
connected with the Order of Odd Fellows, the Knights of the Macca- 
bees and the Ancient Order of United Workmen. 

Dr. Haley has been twice married. His first union of this kind 
was with Miss Emma Redding, and occurred in 1885. They had two 
children, one of whom has died. The living son, Roy, is a student at 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 369 

tlie State University. His mother died in 1891, and in 1896 the father 
married Miss Jessie Turner, of Linn county. They have one child 
their son Jesse. The parents are among the leading citizens of the 
county and are universally accorded a rank which makes them repre- 
sentative of all that is best and most admirable in the life and char- 
acter of its people. They take a deep and helpful interest in all that 
mimsters to the welfare of the locality, and are energetic in augment- 
ing the power and increasing the usefulness of every good agency at 
work in it for its advancement and improvement. 



SAMUEL P. HARTMAN 

The wonderful possibilities in American industrial, commercial 
and professional life, which are portrayed in glowing advertisements 
and rambow-tinted allurements on the printed page, powerfully arrest 
the imagination of foreigners, and engross their most ardent interest 
Even the prosaic domain of agricultural pursuits, as governed by con- 
ditions m this country, is so presented to the foreign reader as to 
thrill him with the story and beget dreams almost as extravao-ant as 
those depicted in the Arabian Nights. Practical experience takes 
something out of the romance of these dreams, and shows that here as 
elsewhere, toil and trial, patient industry and endurance are neces- 
sary to win the promised triumphs, but that there is, even at the 
worst, a substantial basis of real opportunity which makes this land 
ol promise a veritable Eldorado to the rest of the world. 

So found Solomon and Laura (Poper) Hartman, the parents of 
bamuel P. Hartman, natives of the province of Bohemia, Austria, 
when they came to the United States in 1864. and after a short resi- 
.dence m the city of St. Louis, located at Collinsville, Illinois. They 
passed their time well on toward the meridian of life in their native 
land where the father was engaged in the live stock industrv, on the 
small scale on which it is conducted in that country, and after their 
arrival at Collinsville he took a hand in the grocery trade. 

_ He remained at Collinsville twenty-five years, actively occupied in 
business, and at the end of that period retired from active pursuits 
He IS now living in St. Louis, enjoying a well-earned rest and the 
truits of his productive labor for the remainder of his (^ays. He and 
his wife were married in their native land in 1846. Thev had ten 
children, five of whom are living: Adolph, at this time (1912) deputy 
sheriff of St. Louis county, Missouri; Theresa, the wife of Solomon 



370 H18T0EY OF LINN COUNTY 

Stampfer, of St. Louis ; Gus, a member of the state senate of Califor- 
nia and a leading attorney of San Francisco in that state; Samuel P., 
the subject of these paragraphs ; and Phil W., who lives in Chillicothe, 
this state. 

The parents are still living and rejoicing in their own prosperity 
and the excellent work their offspring is credited with in the localities 
of the several homes which the enterprising sons and the faithful 
daughter occupy. For many years the father was interpreter in the 
employ of the courts of St. Louis, and he discharged his duty in that 
capacity with the same intelligence and fidelity that he displayed in 
every other call to service, either in public or private channels. 

His son, Samuel P. Hartman, was but eight years of age when the 
family came to the United States. He was born in the province in 
Austria where his parents came into being, and his life began there 
on April 13, 1856. He remained at home with his parents until he 
reached the age of twelve, and then, with characteristic self-reliance 
and force of character, took up the burden of life for himself, going 
to St. Louis and accepting employment as a clerk in a store in a very 
subordinate position and at very low wages, but by frugality in living, 
making his resources meet his wants. 

In 1870 he came to Linneus and entered the employ of Emanuel & 
Brandenberger, with whom he remained six years. Li 1876 Mr. 
Emanuel came to Brookfield and, after a brief investigation of condi- 
tions, opened a branch store at Bucklin, and others in other towns. In 
these enterprises he made Mr. Hartman his partner, and they were 
carried on for a time with advantage to both. Some time afterward 
Mr. Emanuel retired from business and the Hartman-Tooey Mercan- 
tile Company was formed. The men who formed this company were 
Mr. Hartman, Henry Tooey and Herman Baer, now a resident and 
business man of Beloit, Kansas. 

Mr. Hartman is now engaged in real estate business at Kansas 
City in company with his son, Harold H., and they enjoy a large busi- 
ness. In addition he is vice-president of the Linn County Bank and 
one of its directors, and is also interested in lands in Kansas, Mis- 
souri and Oklahoma. The range and versatality of his mind give him 
capacity to conduct several enterprises at the same time, and he 
attends to them all with his characteristic energy and progressiveness. 

On September 19, 1884, he was married to Miss Emma Hanauer, 
who died November 22, 1897, leaving two children as the fruit of the 
union : Sette E., who is the wife of James Fore, of Denver, Colorado, 
and Harold H., who is living at Kansas City, Missouri. Mr. Hartman 



HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 371 

is a Freemason of the Knights Templar degree in the York rite and 
the thirty-second degree in the Scottish rite and Shrine. He also 
belongs to the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks. His member- 
ship in these orders shows his interest in the fraternal life of his com- 
munity. What he has done and helped to do for the general advance- 
ment and improvement of the city of Brookfield and the county of 
Linn would be a long story and w^ould involve support of every com- 
mendable project tending to this end that has been undertaken since 
he became a resident of the county, for he is foremost in every worthy 
enterprise involving the substantial and enduring welfare of the peo- 
ple. He is a successful merchant, and as such has contributed liberally 
to the mercantile enterprise and influence of the county. He is also an 
excellent citizen, and in that capacity has been of great benefit to this 
part of the state. No man in Linn county is more highly respected, 
and the services of none for the general weal are held in higher appre- 
ciation. 



JAMES R. HUFFAKER, M. D. 

Two facts stand out strongly to the credit of this veteran physi- 
cian and surgeon and give him a firm hold on the regard, confidence 
and good will of the people of Linn county. These are that he is the 
oldest practitioner of medicine in Brookfield in continuous work, and 
he is one of the best and most successful the county has ever known. 
His is a record of long and faithful service to the people of a character 
that has won their high approval, both by its excellence and by its 
zealous industry in their behalf, and it is one that they have shown 
they appreciate even while he is still among them and continuing 
his useful labors for their welfare and enduring comfort and peace 
of mind. 

They have a peculiar interest in the doctor from the fact that 
he is wholly a product of the county. He was born in Baker town- 
ship, Linn county, on March 17, 1847, the son of John W. and Eliza 
(Long) Huffaker, pioneers of that township and forceful factors in 
helping to lay the foundations of its government and give form to its 
civil and moral institutions. The father was a native of Indiana, and 
came from Illinois to Missouri in 1842, with his father. The family 
took up its residence in Baker township, this county, and there the 
doctor's grandfather cleared a farm and redeemed it from the wilder- 
ness. He later disposed of it and returned to Tennessee where he died. 



372 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

His son extended the good work his father had begun by clearing and 
improving a farm. 

He followed farming all his life, but also took part in public 
affairs, filling with credit a number of township and county offices, 
and always wielding an influence for good among the people. In 
1851 he crossed the plains to California with an ox team and was 
engaged in mining there until 1856 meeting with success. He was 
for many years an active and devoted Freemason and prominent 
locally in the order. He died in Brookfield in 1903, and his widow 
passed away two years later. His father, Jesse Huffaker, at one time 
owned the ground on which the state capitol of Indiana now stands in 
Indianapolis. 

Dr. James E. Huffaker was reared in this county on his father's 
farm and began his academic education in the primitive country schools 
of his boyhood. He was ambitious for mental development and a wider 
range of scholarship than they could give him, and when he was eight- 
een years old passed a year at the Carlisle Academy in Carlisle, Indiana. 
After his return from that institution he taught school in Linn and 
Chariton counties until 1868, then, still inspired by his desire for more 
extended academic attainments, entered the State University at Colum- 
bia, from which he received a full course of academic instruction and 
was graduated in 1871. He also studied medicine one year while there. 

He began the study of medicine the same year under the tuition 
of Dr. L. E. Cross of Brookfield, and, after reading studiously one 
year, attended lectures at the Homeopathic Hospital College in Cleve- 
land, Ohio, in the winter of 1872-3. He entered on his professional 
career in the spring of 1873, taking the place of his old preceptor. Dr. 
Cross, and continued in the field with all his energy and the most 
dutiful devotion to business until 1878, when he attended the St. Louis 
Homeopathic College, receiving his degree of M. D. from it the same 
year. Two years later this college conferred on him the honorary 
degree of "ad eundem." 

Dr. Huffaker 's practice has long been extensive and lucrative. 
It has often called him into each of several counties and won him 
golden opinions in all. For he has been a most careful and capable 
practitioner, with extensive theoretical knowledge of the science of med- 
icine and abundant common sense and excellent judgment in the applica- 
tion of it. He understands human nature too, and uses his knowledge 
of it in proper influence over his patients for their benefit and thus 
makes his own ministrations to them more effective and successful. 

Living and moving among the people continually and actively for 



HISTOKY OF LINN COUNTY 373 

so many years, the doctor has necessarily been deeply interested in 
all that concerns them and aids in promoting their welfare. He knows 
the whole county and its needs, and he had been sedulous in his efforts 
to further every undertaking which he has deemed beneficial to it or 
its inhabitants. He is progressive and public spirited, but his zeal in 
this respect is tempered by prudence and guided by good judgment. 
Eash, hasty and ill-considered projects have no welcome from him, 
but all that are worthy and promise good results receive his hearty 
practical support. 

On May 26, 1874, Dr. Huffaker united in marriage with Miss Dora 
Rooker, a native of Tennessee. They have had three children, Edith, 
who is the wife of W. C. Huffaker of Texarkana, Texas; Mabel, who 
died some years ago ; and Elva S., who is living at home, and is the wife 
of I. B. Cooper of Brookfield. In politics the doctor trains with the 
Democratic party and is loyal to its principles and candidates. But 
he has never been an active partisan or sought or desired a political 
office for himself. He performs all the duties of citizenship with fidelity 
and intelligence, but from the honorable post of a private station, and 
as a man deeply interested in the enduring welfare of his county, his 
state and his country. 



WILLIAM J. CARLON 

Realizing that the law is a jealous mistress and will accept no half- 
hearted attention from her votaries, William J. Carlon, one of the 
leading attorneys and counselors of Brookfield, has paid his devotions 
at her shrine with assiduous and studious diligence, and she has 
rewarded his zeal with a high rank at the bar, a large and lucrative 
practice and theconfidence, esteem and good will of his professional 
brethren, together with the universal respect of the people of the city 
and county. 

Mr. Carlon 's life began in Oneida county, New York, on April 3, 
1875, and there he remained until he reached the age of nearly three. 
He is a son of James and Mary (Redmond) Carlon, natives of the 
British empire. The father was born in the town of Easky, County 
Sligo, Ireland, on December 17, 1832, and came to the United States 
with his parents in 1850, and found a new home with them at Boonville, 
New York. He had completed his education, as far as he had oppor- 
tunity to go, in his native land, and when the New World spread before 
him all its wealth of chances for advancement he at once began to 
embrace them. He was engaged in the livery business ten years in 



374 HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 

Boonville, and also owned a farm in the county of Oneida, in which that 
city is located. 

There also he met with and married the mother of William J., who 
was born in England of Irish parents, and who died in this county in 

1878, one year after her arrival within its boundaries. They had six 
children, two sons and four daughters, all of whom are now deceased 
but their son William J. In 1877 the father brought his family to 
Missouri and located on a farm in Brookfield township, this county. In 

1879, one year after the death of his first wife, he married a second, 
being united by this espousal to Miss Joanna Burns. They became 
the parents of six children, two of whom are living. The father is now 
living in Brookfield retired from active pursuits. The paternal grand- 
father, whose name was also William Carlon, was born and reared in 
Ireland and came to the United States in 1850, as has been noted. He 
was a farmer and died in Lewis county. New York, at the age of eighty- 
three. 

William J. Carlon, the immediate subject of these paragraphs, 
grew to manhood on his father's farm in Linn county and attended the 
country school in the neighborhood when he could be spared from the 
exacting duties of cultivating the farm and the other work incident to 
that. He completed his academic education in a school of a higher 
grade in Brookfield and one and one-half years at State University. 
In 1895 he entered the law department of the State University as a 
student, and obtained his degree of LL. B. from that institution in 
1896. But he had been admitted to the bar some months before by the 
supreme court of the state in Jefferson City, and after his graduation 
he began his practice in Brookfield. 

This he continued without intermission and with steady progress 
in the volume and value of his business and in public esteem, until the 
beginning of the Spanish- American War, when he helped to organize 
Company A, Sixth Missouri Infantry, and was elected first lieutenant 
for that short but decisive contest. He was excluded from the service 
on account of defective eyesight, and immediately returned to his law 
business. By 1898 his rank at the bar was so well established that he 
was nominated by his party as its candidate for the office of prosecuting 
attorney. Owing to the large adverse majority in the county, he was 
not elected, but he made a very creditable run for the position. 

Mr. Carlon has lived continuously in Brookfield since he entered on 
his professional career, except during one year, when he was in the new 
state of Oklahoma. He has been earnest, intelligent and practical in 
his support of all worthy undertakings for the improvement of Brook- 



mSTOEl OF LINN COUNTY 375 

field and Linn county, and the substantial and enduring welfare of their 
people. But projects of doubtful propriety or advantage never receive 
consideration from him. He has excellent judgment, and he is guided 
by It, not by rose-tmted prospects or sentimental considerations, in all 
he does. 

In his political relations he has been a life-long Eepublican, zealous 
and energetic m the service of his party and much esteemed by its 
leaders and its rank and file for his wisdom in council, his efficiency in 
action and his unwavering loyalty under all conditions. Fraternally he 
IS connected with the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks He has 
also served four years as one of the directors of the National American 
Society of Kansas City in United States. On all sides he is regarded as 
one of Lmn county's best, most useful and most representative citizens 



ALPHA L. BURNS 

Occupying a high rank in his profession, held in the greatest esteem 
as a man and citizen, and earnestly interested in everything that per- 
tains to the progress and improvement of the city and county of his 
home, Alpha L. Burns, of Brookfield, the present prosecuting attorney 
o± Lmn county is a force for great good and extensive usefulness in 
his lo,cahty and an ornament to its progressive and elevated manhood 
^e IS the second member of the law firm of Burns, Burns & Burns- his 
two partners being his older and younger brothers. 

Mr. Burns was born on a Linn county farm on January 19 1879 
He is a son of John T. and Mary (Joyce) Burns, the former a native of 
Ireland, born near Dublin, and the mother born in Linn county but of 
Irish parentage. The father came to the United States at the age of 
seventeen and located at Albany, New York. He was a sailor, and 
trom 1855 to 1861 cruised along the shores of the gTeat lakes and the 
Atlantic ocean. Although a Democrat, he was ardently attached to 
the Union and soon after the Civil War began enlisted in Company B 
Forty-fourth New York Infantry for a term of three vears. At the 
end of that term he re-enlisted, becoming a member of Company F in 
Creneral Hancock's veteran corps. 

He was in the Army of the Potomac and of course saw a great deal 
of active service, taking part in many of the historic battles of the war 
among them the sanguinary contests of Antietam and the Wilderness' 
In the latter he was severely wounded, but he recovered rapidly from 
his wound and went again into the service in time to receive another 



376 HISTOEY OF LIJs^N COUNTY 

in one of the later battles. When the war closed he still remained in 
the army for a time and did duty of a high order in various ways. He 
was mustered out of the service with the rank of corporal. 

In 1866 he came to Linn county and located on a farm which he 
lived on and cultivated until his death in May, 1905. His widow is still 
living. They were the parents of twelve children, seven of whom are 
living: Thomas P., a lawyer, and the head of the firm of Burns, Bunrs 
& Burns; John E., a resident of Ashland, Montana; James H., who lives 
in Nebraska; Alpha L., the immediate subject of this writing; Charles 
B., the third member of the law firm; Lola J., who is the wife of J. L. 
Morey, of St. Louis; and Theresa, who is a school teacher and lives 
with her mother. 

Two of the sons were sacrificed on the altar of their country during 
the Spanish- American War: William B., who was killed in the Philip- 
pines while fighting as a member of Company F, Forty-fourth United 
States Volunteers; and Joseph A., who belonged to Company A, Sixth 
Missouri Infantry, and died of typhoid fever in Savannah, Georgia. 
They followed the inspiring example of their father in an active exhibi- 
tion of their patriotism and it cost them their lives. He was a Catholic 
in religion and a member of the Grand Army of the Republic in fra- 
ternal life. He was a great student and a man of extensive and varied 
attainments in learning. 

His son Alpha was reared and educated in Linn county, and here 
also he made his preparation for the professional career he is working 
out with so much credit to himself and benefit to the county. He 
studied law under the tuition of the late Harry K. West and was ad- 
mitted to the bar of this county in 1902. He began practicing at once 
and soon afterward formed a partnership with his brother Thomas 
under the firm name of Burns & Burns. In 1906 he was elected prose- 
cuting attorney of Linn county and in 1910 was re-elected. The excel- 
lent record he made in his first term he is extending in his second, 
gaining friends and popularity as time passes and the people are more 
and more impressed by his fidelity to duty and decided ability. 

On November 20, 1907, Mr. Burns was united in marriage with 
Miss Anne McGowan, a daughter of John and Margaret (Meehan) 
McGowan. Three children have been born of the union, John T. and 
Margaret T. and Mary C, twins. The father is a Democrat in politics, 
a member of the Order of Knights of Columbus and the Order of Wood- 
men in fraternal relations, and belongs to the Catholic Church in 
religious afiiliation. 

Thomas P. Burns, head of the firm of Burns, Burns & Burns, 



HISTOFiY OF LIKN COUNTY 377 

lawyers, and an older brother of Alpha, was born on June 14, 1868, on 
his father's farm in this county. He grew to manhood on the farm and 
obtained his academic education in the public schools. After a due 
course of preparatory study of law he was admitted to pract^ice in 1894, 
then passed four years in Joplin, Jasper county, this state. At the 
end of that period he returned to Linn county and was soon afterward 
elected county attorney and re-elected for a second term. He is very 
prominent as a lawyer and is held in the highest esteem as a man and 
citizen, being progressive, enterprising and public spirited, with an 
earnest and helpful practical interest in everything involving the wel- 
fare of the people of his city and county. 

On June 26, 1905, he was married to Miss Eleanor Downing, of St. 
Louis. He also is a Democrat in his political alliance, and belongs to 
the Knights of Columbus and the Order of Elks fraternally. His re- 
ligious allegiance is given loyally to the Catholic Church. In all the 
relations of life he is true to his manhood, faithful to duty and zealous 
in the performance of everything he undertakes, slighting nothing and 
winning good results in all. Brookfield and Linn county have no better 
or more useful citizen. 

Charles B. Burns, another member of this influential family and 
the third partner in the law firm, was born on March 6, 1881, on his 
father's farm, and like his brothers, was reared and educated in this 
county. He studied law under the direction of his brothers, and was 
admitted to the bar in October, 1904, and at once became a member of 
the firm of Burns, Burns & Burns. He has already taken rank among 
the most promising lawyers of his age in this part of the state, is 
prominent and popular socially, and is in all respects a valuable addi- 
tion to the citizenship of the city and county in which he lives. He is a 
Catholic m religion and a Knight of Columbus and a Modern Woodman 
of Americfi fraternally. He has shown his cordial and intelligent in- 
terest in the city and county by active participation in everything that 
makes for their betterment and the increased comfort and general weal 
of their people. All classes of the population esteem him highly and 
he is worthy of the regard and good will of all. 



LOMAX & STANDLY 

This much esteemed banking firm, whose enterprise and progres- 
siveness have done a great deal of good in and around Laclede in fur- 
thering the development and improvement of the locality, and whose 



378 HISTOEY OF LINX COUNTY 

banking institution is a source of just pride to tlie people of Jefferson 
township, has the reputation of being among the most progressive con- 
cerns in Linn county, and its members are everywhere reckoned in the 
number of the county's best, most useful and most representative citi- 
zens. Their local patriotism is of a high order, and they give expres- 
sion to it in energetic and effective support of every worthy enterprise 
undertaken for the good of the township and county in which they con- 
duct their helpful operations. Their bank, which is a private institu- 
tion, was founded in 1895. It has a capital stock of $5,000 and a surplus 
of $10,000. Dr. Z. T. Standly is its president, H. C. Lomax, his partner 
in the firm, is cashier, and the son of the latter, H. W. Lomax, is the 
assistant cashier. They are all excellent business men, and they carry 
on their business, which includes all features of general banking, in a 
manner very profitable to the bank and highly beneficial to the 
community. 

H. C. Lomax, the .cashier and controlling spirit of the bank, be- 
longs to a family of bankers, special aptitude for this form of commer- 
cial enterprise seeming to have been given to several of its members, 
and they have found good opportunities for exercising their endow- 
ments in this respect. He was born in Adams county, Illinois, on 
September 21, 1844, and is a son of John and Anna (Shank) Lomax, 
the former born in Sevier county, Tennessee, in February, 1812, and 
the latter in Virginia on June 16, 1819. They were married in 1835, 
and had thirteen children. The father died in February, 1877, and the 
mother Anna Lomax, 1902. 

Of the thirteen children born of their union eight are living : W. M., 
who resides at Laclede ; Melinda J., who is the widow of the late J. C. 
Carothers ; J. W., who also has his home at Laclede ; Hattie, who is now 
the wife of Gilman Eeed of Kansas City, Kansas ; Laura L., who mar- 
ried W. C. Love and is living with him at Long Beach, California; 
George N., who dwells in Denison, Texas ; Elizabeth, who is the wife of 
Horace Alexander, also a resident of Denison, Texas; and H. C, the 
Laclede banker who is the immediate subject of this writing. 

In 1835, about the time of his marriage, the father moved from his 
native state to Preble county, Ohio, and the next year came to Missouri. 
But he did not remain long in this state at that time. In 1837 he moved 
across the Mississippi into Adams county, Illinois, where he remained 
until 1859. In that year he returned to Missouri, and was variously 
occupied here until the beginning of the Civil War. He enlisted soon 
after hostilities began in the Eighteenth Missouri Infantry, on the 
Union side of the great sectional conflict, and remained in activo serv- 



HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 379 

ice with liis regiment until the fall of 1862. He was then taken prisoner 
by a band of guerrillas while recruiting a company in Tennessee. After 
six or eight months of captivity, during which he suffered many hard- 
ships and privations, he was exchanged in June, 1863. But his patriotic 
desire to aid in the defense of his country was not yet sated, and it 
inspired him to a new engagement in the army. 

He enlisted again, becoming captain of Company M, of the First 
Alabama Volunteer Union Cavalry, with which he remained until after 
the close of the war, during the latter part of which he was provost 
marshal of northern Alabama. He was also with Sherman in his his- 
toric march to the sea, and took part in the battle of Nashville and many 
other engagements. He was mustered out of the service in 1865, and 
immediately returned to his farm in this county in the vicinity of 
Laclede. He cultivated this farm, until 1871, then opened a grocery 
store in Laclede, which he conducted until his death six years later at 
the age of sixty-five. 

H. C. Lomax came with his parents to Linn county and Laclede 
in 1859, He was then fifteen years old, and after completing his educa- 
tion here, found employment in a general merchandising establishment, 
with which he was connected until 1870. During the next twenty-five 
years he was engaged in general farming, then, in 1895, bought the 
banking business which he and Mr. Standly have ever since been carry- 
ing on. In 1897 Mr. Lomax gave up his farming operations and since 
then he has devoted his time and attention exclusively to the affairs of 
the bank. He was its president in 1895 and 1896, and in 1897 accepted 
the cashiership, which he has held continuously from then to the pres- 
ent time (1912), and the institution has flourished under his manage- 
ment. 

During the Civil War he also had some experience in the military 
service as a member of the provisional militia under Captain Holland. 
On September 26, 1876, he was married to Miss Matilda A. Turner, and 
by this union he has become the father of six children, four of whom are 
living. They are : E. M. Lomax, president of the Linn county Bank in 
Brookfield, a sketch of whose life will be found in this work; J. C, who 
is prominent in the abstracting and loan business at Princeton; John 
T., who is president of the Farmers State Guaranteed Bank of San 
Benito, Texas; and H. W., who has already been mentioned as the 
assistant cashier of his father's bank. 

The mother of these children died on July 2, 1894, and on March 
18, 1896, the father contracted a second marriage in which he was 



380 HISTOUY OF LINX COUNTY 

united with Mrs. Betty L. (Watson) Heryford, the widow of the late 
Walter Heryford of Hale, Missouri. Mr. Lomax is considered a lead- 
ing citizen of Linn county, and he well deserves this distinction. For 
there has not been for years a project for the benefit of the county or 
the betterment of its residents in the promotion of which he has not 
been a leading factor. In business, in public affairs and in social life he 
stands high in the regard of the people and enjoys their confidence in 
full measure. His life has been open and serviceable among them, and 
they have found a great deal in it to commend. 

Mr. Lomax has held his church membership at Laclede for 46 
years. He has received his mail there since 1859 and is the oldest con- 
tinuous voter in the township. 



WILLIAM L. MOORE 

Of the multitude of occupations which engage the jfaculties and 
provide for the wants of men, William L. Moore of Linneus has devoted 
his powers and endeavors to but two, but he has succeeded in both of 
these, and by doing so has given strong indications that he would have 
done the same in any one of many others. For he has shown excellent 
judgment, constant industry and commendable enterprise, with fine 
business capacity, and these qualifications will win success in any 
undertaking. 

Mr. Moore is a native of Anderson county, Tennessee, where his 
life began on July 20, 1839. His parents, Joseph C. and Jane (Pate) 
Moore, who belonged to old families long resident in Tennessee, brought 
him to Missouri and Linn county in 1842, when he was but three years 
old. He was reared on his father's farm and educated in the subscrip- 
tion schools prevalent in this part of the country in his boyhood. From 
the time of his arrival within its borders until now (1912) he has passed 
his life in this state, and during all his years of youthful and manly 
strength has been an active and productive factor in the great sum of 
its industries. He is therefore, to all intents and purposes, a thorough 
Missourian, and in many ways has manifested his cordial and helpful 
interest in the welfare of the state and its people. 

From the dawn of his manhood until January 8, 1896, Mr. Moore 
was occupied in farming on his own account. On that date he began 
business as a banker in partnership with Major Mullins under the firm 
name of Moore & Mullins. They have a private banking house in which 



HISTOEY OF LINX COUNTY 381 

they carry on a general banking business, including all forms of pres- 
ent-day banking, and by their close attention to business and liberal 
policy in conducting it they have made their institution popular with 
the people and of great service to them. The patronage they have won 
by this means has also made the bank strong, and given it a firm hold 
on the confidence and high standing in the regard of all classes of the 
population. 

Mr. Moore has been the inspiring and controlling force in the 
management of the business, and it is to his business capacity and wide 
sweep of vision in financial matters that the bank owes its success and 
its high rank in the business world of this part of the country. He has 
studied matters of finance with zeal and thoughtfulness, and has become 
an authority on everything connected with them. He gives his patrons 
the benefit of his extensive and accurate knowledge on the subject, and 
they rely with confidence on his judgment. For they know him to be 
prudent as well as far-seeing, and strictly upright and reliable in all 
he does and says. 

On September 18, 1870, Mr. Moore was united in marriage with 
Miss Emily F. Mullins. They have three children: Greely, who lives 
in Linneus ; Robert B., whose home is in Independence, Kansas ; and 
Edith, who is the wife of Frederick H. Powers of Kansas City. The 
father is as well known and as much admired for his public spirit and 
enterprise in seeking to advance the development and improvement of 
the city and county of his home and promote the welfare of their people 
as he is for his high character as a man and his skill and progressive- 
ness as a banker. The people look upon him as one of their best and 
most representative citizens and esteem him in accordance with this 
estimate. They know he can be depended on to do his part toward the 
successful development of any worthy undertaking for their good, and 
that their interests, when committed to his care, are safe in his hands, 
and will have proper attention. 



FRED W. POWERS 

Entering the military service in defense of the Union soon after 
the beginning of the Civil War, and just at the dawn of his manhood, 
first in a provisional command and afterward in the regular service ; 
taking part in several important engagements during the momentous 
conflict and also doing great work for the cause he had espoused in the 



382 HISTORY OF LINJf COUNTY 

domain of construction ; then, when ' ' the war drum throbbed no longer, 
and the battle flags were furled," conducting the operations of a farm 
with success and profit, Fred W. Powers was well prepared by the 
nature and variety of his experience for the duties in public office and a 
business of importance that have since fallen to his lot and required his 
attention. 

Mr. Powers was born in Linn county, Missouri, on May 6, 1841, 3 
miles north of Bucklin and is the son of Dr. John F. and Isabel (Brown- 
lee) Powers, both of whom have been dead for many years. The father 
was a native of Mahoning county, Ohio, born on October 15, 1814, and 
the mother's life began on December 25, 1815, in Ayr, Scotland,— 

*'Auld Ayr, which ne'er a town surpasses. 
For honest lads and bonnie lasses." 

She came to the American continent at an early age and located in 
Ohio, where she met with and married her husband. He was a physi- 
cian in active practice in his native state, but longed for a life in the 
farther West. 

Accordingly, early in the year 1841 he voyaged with the family he 
then had down the Ohio and up the Mississippi and Missouri to Bruns- 
wick in Chariton county, this state, and from there journeyed overland 
to Linn county. He took up his residence in a rural community and 
from then until his death, which occurred in Jefferson City on February 
20, 1865, he was engaged in a general practice of his profession in Linn 
county and those which adjoin it, except during the last six months of 
his life, when he was in the military service of the country as captain of 
Company I, of the Forty-second Missouri Infantry, a service in which 
he offered up his being on the altar of patriotism. His widow survived 
him a little over four years, dying in this county on April 9, 1869, after 
having endeared herself to all who knew her, by her sterling woman- 
hood and genuine worth. 

She and her husband were the parents of five children, four of 
whom are living : Mary, the wife of Noah Caton of Bucklin ; Fred W., 
the immediate subject of this brief review; Leah J., the wife of C. G. 
Bigger of Marceline; and Dr. Isaac V., of Brookfield. The paternal 
grandfather, Isaac Powers, was born on Long Island, New Y'ork, in 
1776, and early in his manhood moved to what was then a part of Trum- 
bull, but is now Mahoning county, Ohio, where he died in 1863. His 
wife, whose maiden name was Leah Frazee, died at the same place 



HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 383 

iu 1865. The grandfather on the mother's side was Rev. John Brown- 
lee, a Presbyterian clergyman in Ayr, Scotland, where he died when he 
was about forty-three years of age. The grandmother on the mother's 
side died in Linn county, Missouri, about 1842. 

Fred W. Powers grew to manhood in Linn county and began his 
education in a subscription school conducted in the neighborhood of his 
home in his boyhood. In 1859 he attended Central College at Fayette, 
Missouri, and in 1861 McGee College at College Mound in Macon county! 
When he had completed his college course, and was ready to enter upon 
the active duties of life in his own behalf, he found his country engaged 
in a terrific sectional war, and felt it his duty to go to the defense'^of 
his convictions and the section of the country with which they allied him. 
In 1862 he entered the military service, and the next year his com- 
pany became a part of the Second Provisional regiment, Enrolled 
Missouri Militia. In the early part of 1864 he joined the Twelfth 
Missouri Cavalry as second lieutenant of Company L, and in that com- 
pany he served to the close of the war. He took part in the battle of 
Nashville, Tennessee, and some other engagements of moment, and 
after that served as a pontoonier of Wilson's cavalry, especially during 
the raid made by his daring commander into the country of the enemy. 
The regiment and the rest of the body of soldiers to which it was 
attached pushed their way as far south as Macon, Georgia, and when 
they arrived there in May, 1865, found that the war was over and the 
cause they were fighting for was won. 

^ Mr. Powers returned to Linn county and followed farming until 
1871.^ In the fall of 1870 he was elected circuit clerk for the county, a 
position in which he served five successive terms. In the fall of 1891 
he moved to Nashville, Tennessee, where he was engaged in an abstract- 
ing business for two years. At the end of that period he returned to 
Linn county, and during the next three years practiced law and did 
abstracting. In 1896 he was made cashier of the Moore & Mullins Bank 
of Linneus, and this position he has filled ever since with great credit 
to himself and advantage to the bank. He also practices law in con- 
nection with his duties at the bank. 

On June 2.3, 1870, he was married to Miss Annie L. Roberts, a 
daughter of Morris and Jane Roberts of Linn county, Missouri. Two 
cliildren have been born of the union, one of whom i,s living, Fred 
Harold Powers, who resides in Kansas City. The father is a member 
of the Masonic order, the Odd Fellows and the Ancient Order of United 
Workmen. 



384 HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 

ROBERT J. WHEELER 

(Deceased) 

Siicli a death as that of the late E. J. Wheeler, of Brookfield, least 
foreseen and soonest over, was that euthanasia, that peaceful and easy 
departure so much desired by the ancients. The severing of his vital 
cord came suddenly and was almost, if not entirely painless; and it was 
not expected by his friends, and seemed not to have been by himself, 
when it occurred. It is true he was a patriarch in years, and had long 
been a sufferer from asthma. It is true also that he had shown signs 
of failing strengih and energy. But there was no indication in his case 
that his end was at hand, and for several days before it came, and even 
on the night when he reached it he was active and apparently as well 
as he had been for many months. His final summons came, however, 
in the twinkling of an eye, and in a few minutes his long, useful and 
highly creditable career was terminated. 

While this occurrence shocked and profoundly grieved the com- 
munity which had honored him as one of its best and most eminent 
citizens for almost twenty years, it was in accordance with ' ' the eternal 
fitness of things." He had lost no time in his busy and productive life, 
and had always kept his work up to the hour. So there was no un- 
finished business for his survivors to be troubled with. His house was 
in order, his record was complete, his work was done, and he could lie 
down to his long sleep in perfect peace. 

Mr. Wheeler was born in Prince Edward county, Virginia, on 
March 30, 1829; and was a son of Drury N. and Susan E. (Moss) 
Wheeler, both of the same nativity as himself. The father's life began 
in 1802 and the mother's in 1807. They were married in 1828 and moved 
to Missouri in 1831, locating in Chariton county, which then extended 
to the Iowa line, and the greater part of which was still a wilderness. 
They were the parents of five sons and five daughters. All are now de- 
ceased but their son Drury N., Jr., and their daughter, Mrs. Elizabeth 
Forest. The father died on November 6, 1861, at the age of fifty-nine. 
The mother survived him twenty-five years, and died at Bucklin in 1886, 
aged seventy-nine. 

Their son, Robert J. Wheeler, obtained only such an education as 
the primitive schools of the wilderness could furnish, so far as academic 
instruction was concerned. But he was studious and inquiring, and his 
bent was in the upward direction, and he amassed for himself, through 
his own efforts, a considerable fund of general information, especially 




EGBERT J. WHEELER 



HISTORY OF LIXX COUXTY 385 

along practical lines. He was but two years old wlien his parents 
brought him to this state, and he remained with them in Chariton 
county until he attained his majority. In the spring of 1850 he left 
them and began farming on his own account. He followed this occupa- 
tion for fourteen years with decided success and profit. In 1864 he sold 
his two farms and moved to Bucklin in this county. Here he turned 
his attention to buying and shipping tobacco, of which there was a 
large quantity raised in Linn county at the time. 

The tobacco business was profitable to him, as his farming had 
been, and as everything he put his hand to seemed to be. But he ad- 
hered to this line of trade less than a year, and after selling his stock 
in it, opened a general merchandising establishment in Bucklin, which 
at once secured an extensive and active patronage and flourished, with 
augmenting business and profits, as long as he conducted it. He was 
not free from heavy losses, however. He took no part in the Civil War, 
although supposed to be in sjrmpathy with the South during that con- 
flict, and his neutrality made him the prey of the predatory warriors 
of both sides who infested this part of the country. His store was 
frequently levied on by partisans of each, and on one occasion he was 
forced to open his whole establishment to a wandering band and see it 
robbed of a large quantity of merchandise and $500 in cash taken from 
his safe. He was also burned out twice at heavy loss and without 
insurance. 

In the course of time he quit general merchandising and confined 
his operations to handling farm machinery, running a livery stable and 
dealing in horses, mules and cattle. In October, 1886, he moved to- 
Brookfield and here founded the Wheeler Saving Bank, of which he 
remained president to the time of his death. He also invested heavily 
in real estate in Brookfield, and when he died was possessed of fifty 
or sixty tenant houses in the best part of the city, a number of vacant 
lots, his block of business houses, including the bank building on Main 
street, and his fine residence facing the East park, in addition to his 
interests in the bank he founded. 

Mr. Wheeler was married four times, first in 1850, to Miss Louisa F. 
Brooks. She died in 1852, and the next year he took as his second wife 
her sister. Miss Martha A. Brooks. They had ten children, six of whom 
are living: Lou N., now the wife of Harry Markham, of Brookfield; 
Martha S., James E., William N., Mrs. Fannie A. Stone and Robert L., 
a banker in Brookfield. Their mother died in 1880, and in 1881 the 
father contracted his third marriage, in which he w^as united with Mrs. 



386 HISTOilY OF LINN COUNTY 

Elizabeth J. Nagel, who died in 1882. His fourth wife, whom he mar- 
ried in 1883, was Miss Eva Bryan, who is also deceased, having passed 
away in 1903. 

In politics Mr. Wheeler was an old-time Democrat, and, although 
he frequently served his city and township in official capacities, among 
them that of judge of the county court, he had no taste for offi,cial life. 
If he had possessed this and sought to gratify it, he might have made a 
mark in the political world. His party and other parties in his time fre- 
quently made congressmen and governors of men who did not have 
a tithe of his natural or acquired ability. But he always preferred busi- 
ness to politics, and while he thereby lost honors and distinctions he 
might have won, he also escaped the excessive annoyances of political 
life. 

Mr. Wheeler died at 2 o'clock on Tuesday morning, March 14, 1905. 
He had been a member of the Methodist Episcopal Church, South, for 
over fifty years, and his peace with his Maker had long been made and 
kept. The burial of his remains took place on Thursday, March 16, and 
was an occasion of solemnity and mourning throughout the city. Rev. 
J. W. Kimbrell pronounced a tender and touching eulogy on the life 
and character of the deceased, and Rev. W. C. Atwood, pastor of the 
First Presbyterian Church, spoke eloquently of him as a citizen, a 
churchman and a Freemason. The Masonic fraternity of the city at- 
tended in a body and escorted the remains to the train which bore them 
to Bucklin for interment. The lodge of the order at Bucklin had charge 
of the services at the grave. Mr, Wheeler was made a Freemason at 
Westville, Chariton county, Missouri, in 1857. He dimitted to Bucklin 
Lodge in 1863, and from that to Brookfield Lodge in 1888. 

Throughout his long life, and wherever he lived, he contributed 
liberally to his church, his fraternity and all other worthy agencies at 
work among the people for their benefit, and did not limit his benefac- 
tions to his sect in religion, his order in fraternal life, or his personal 
friends in private relations. But his private charity, although always 
generous, was at all times bestowed judiciously and on meritorious 
claims. And it was unostentatious in accordance with the Scriptural 
injunction. His life and character would have adorned any community, 
and did adorn several, and he passed into history as one of the best 
and most useful citizens Linn county ever had, and one of the finest ex- 
amples of elevated American manhood ever seen by the people of this 
section of our common country. 



HISTOFtY OF LINN COUNTY 387 

STERLING L. BRADLEY 

This esteemed citizen and veteran business man of Linneus has 
seen life and mingled with men under a variety of circumstances and in 
widely separated localities. His experience has been instructive in 
many ways, and aided in qualifying him for success in mercantile life 
and all the duties of citizenship. He is one of the pioneer druggists of 
Linneus, having been connected with the trade in that city for over 
half a century, with an interval of only two years, during which he was 
in California. He has conducted a drug store of his own for a con- 
tinuous period of forty years, and throughout that long lapse of time 
has enjoyed in a marked degree the confidence and good will of the 
people. 

Mr. Bradley is a native of Missouri, having been born in Howard 
county on August 20, 1843. His parents, William R. and Sarah A. 
(Colvin) Bradley, were born and reared in Kentucky, and early in their 
married life left their native heath, which was no longer on the frontier, 
for a region that still contained most of the features of adventurous 
pioneer struggling against the wilds of nature and daily peril from 
the savage denizens of the wilderness, man and beast. They were 
farmers, and on their arrival in this state located in Howard county. 
There they partially redeemed a tract of land from the waste, then, 
in 1853, moved to Linn county, where they began a repetition of their 
good work in Howard in helping to improve and build up the country. 
But the father did not live long to advance his interests in this county. 
He died in 1856, after passing some time in the grocery trade and later 
keeping a hotel. His wife also died in Linn county. 

Alexander Bradley, the grandfather of Sterling, also moved from 
Kentucky, where he was born, grew to manhood and reared a family, 
and found a new home in Missouri. He died in Ray county, this state, 
after some years of laborious farming, which he conducted with varying 
success, the condition of the country at the time making all agricultural 
pursuits difficult, dangerous and scant and uncertain in results. 

Sterling L. Bradley grew from the age of ten years to man's estate 
in Linneus, beginning his education in subscription schools in Howard 
county and completing it in similar primitive schools in Linn county. 
When his limited facilities for scholastic training were exhausted, he 
began the battle of life for himself by carrying the United States mails 
between Linneus and Brunswick, Milan -and Trenton. His routes were 
long, and were rendered difficult to cover by the rough state of the 
country, roads and bridges being few, and what there were badly con- 



388 HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 

structed. The way was often beset with danger, too; and there was 
comparatively little shelter from the rigors of the weather. But in 
spite of all trials and difficulties he persevered in his work, and made an 
excellent record in doing it. 

In 1859 he entered the drug store of L. W. Clark as a clerk, and 
during the next two years carefully studied the business under the 
instruction of that gentleman. He passed the next three years clerking 
for other merchants, and by the end of that period, the adventurous 
spirit he had inherited from his ancestors asserted its dominion in a 
way that could not be resisted. He yielded to its demands, and, in 
1864, went to California overland, driving a four-mule team across the 
plains. The company he was with was not molested by the Indians, 
and reached its destination in safety. 

Mr. Bradley remained in California about two years, then returned 
to his home by water. On his arrival in Linneus he again found em- 
ployment as a clerk until 1872, when he started in the drug business 
on his own account, and since then he has been continuously engaged 
in it. He has witnessed the subsequent growth and development of this 
part of the state, and has borne his full share of the labor and sacrifice 
required to promote its progress. In all undertakings for the advance- 
ment of his locality he has been one of the energetic and intelligent 
workers, and his contributions to the gratifying results have been 
highly appreciated. 

On February 13, 1866, he was married to Miss Sarah E. Easley, a 
daughter of Thornton T. and Almeda (Alexander) Easley, of Linneus. 
Two children have been born of the union, one of whom is living, Henry 
T. Bradley, of Chillicothe, in this state. The father is a loyal and de- 
voted Freemason of the Royal Arch degree, and has belonged to the 
fraternity since 1867. He has filled all the offices in the gift of his 
lodge, and is now the oldest member of that organization, which is 
Jackson Lodge, No. 82. Throughout Linn county and many of those 
that adjoin it he is well and favorably known as a business man and an 
excellent citizen, and everywhere he is held in the highest esteem by 
all classes of the people. 

THOMAS B. BOWYER, ESQUIRE 

Each human life has in it some element of special interest different 
and distinct from that of every other human life, and worthy of special 
consideration. Two facts stand out conspicuously in the history of 
Thomas B. Bowyer, Esquire, of Linneus, which give it an unusual 



HISTOEY OF LIXN COUNTY 389 

claim on the attention of all observers. He is one of the oldest citizens 
of the city and was the first white boy born in Linn county. His life 
began on December 25, 1833, on the bank of Locust creek, one mile and 
a half southwest of Linneus, where his parents, William S. and Martha 
(Tyre) Bowyer, then lived. 

The father was born in Tennessee and the mother in North Caro- 
lina. They ,came to Missouri early in the 20 's and located in Howard 
county; Henry Bowyer, the grandfather of Henry B., being one of the 
foremost pioneers of that portion of the state. He afterwards moved 
to Linn county, and here he passed the remainder of his days and ended 
his life, passing away after a long and creditable record of usefulness, 
during which he served under General Andrew Jackson in the war 
against the Seminole Indians in Florida. He was the father of two 
sons and six daughters, all of whom were forceful in the early life of 
this county and died among its people. 

When William S. Bowyer came to what is now Linn county in the 
winter of 1831 it was a part of Chariton county. He located his family 
in a camp on Locust creek where his wife and three small children, 
and a slave girl, remained six weeks while he returned with his 
brother Jesse to Howard county for the family of the latter. In the 
meantime a heavy snow, which was on the ground, melted and swelled 
the streams to such an extent that it was impossible for anybody to 
cross them. Mrs. Bowyer, with the aid of her brother, Louis Tyre, 
then a youth sixteen years of age but a man in spirit and resourceful- 
ness, guarded the camp and provided for the children through all the 
hardships and dangers which oppressed the little gathering of lonely 
wanderers, including frequent visits from the Indian village not far 
distant, the savages being troublesome in their calls but not hostile in 
their demeanor. The only annoyance they gave Mrs. Bowyer was their 
presence and their strong desire to take Ann, the young slave girl, 
away with them. She was black as ebony and very sprightly in manner 
and action, and made a great impression on the Indians, who had never 
seen another person of her race. 

As soon as Mr. Bowyer and his brother Jesse returned to the camp 
with the family of the latter, they entered government land and built 
themselves log cabins to live in. William Bowyer added to his entry 
of land until he owned 600 acres, and devoted all his energies to clear- 
ing, breaking up and farming what he had until the declaration of war 
against Mexico. Immediately after this he enlisted for the defense of 
his country under Captain Barbee, and in recompense of his fourteen 
months service in the army and his valor on several battlefields of the 



390 HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTl 

war, was given a warrant for land by the government. On this he 
selected an acreage adjoining that already occupied by his family, 
and so enlarged his estate. 

His marriage with the mother of Thomas B. Bowyer occurred in 
Howard county, this state, in about 1828, and brought him five children, 
three sons and two daughters. Two of the children died in infancy, 
and the oldest daughter has since passed awaj^ The two who are liv- 
ing are residents of Linn county and Colorado. Their father was a man 
of adventurous spirit and always on the lookout for some opportunity 
to do something for the benefit of his family. So, when the melodious 
voice of California filled the world with its golden music in 1849, he 
was captivated by the strain. In 1850 he became one of a party of 
four from Linneus who crossed the plains to the new Eldorado with 
mule teams and sought their fortunes on the Pacific slope. Mr. Bowyer 
passed nearly two years in California, but on his way home died of 
smallpox at Brunswick, less than forty 'miles from where his family 
was waiting for his arrival; the end of his life coming in February, 
1852. His widow survived him fourteen years, passing away in 1866. 
His name is still revered in Linn county, where he is considered one 
of the greatest hunters this region has even known, one of its most 
typical xjioneers, and one of its fairest and most equitable adminis- 
trators of the law as county judge, a position which he filled with great 
credit to himself and benefit to the people for a period of eight years 
during the formative stage of the county's history. 

Thomas B. Bowyer, his son, grew to manhood in Linn county and 
obtained his education in the primitive schools of his boyhood and 
youth. He began farming on his own account at an early age, starting 
the development and improvement of a tract of land in the wilderness, 
as his father had done, and remaining on it until 1902, when he moved 
to Linneus, where he now has his home. During the Civil War he 
served four months in a militia company in 1864, engaged mainly in 
guard duty; but seeing some active field duty in fighting the bush- 
whackers of the time, who made conditions in his part of the state 
very unpleasant, and life and property decidedly unsafe. 

In October, 1855, he was married to Miss Mary A. Alexander, a 
daughter of Edmund and Eliza (Phillips) Alexander, esteemed pioneers 
of Linn county. Of the nine children born of the union, six are living: 
William, who is a resident of Brookfield; John, who resides in Linneus; 
Benjamin F., a prosperous Linn county farmer; Emma E., whose home 
is in Linneus; Minnie, the wife of J. Phillips, of Portland, Oregon; and 
Nellie K., who is the wife of D. Buckley, of Linn county. Their mother 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 391 

is still living and is held in high esteem by all classes of the people 
throughout the county, as her husband is, also, and always has been. 
He is a Democrat in politics and has at all times been loyal and 
effective in the service of his party. He has been a justice of the peace 
during the last twenty years, and has filled a number of other township 
offices with great credit to himself and substantial benefit to the people. 
He and his wife, with the other members of his family, belong to the 
Baptist Church. No man in Linn county is more widely known or 
more generally esteemed by its people, and none is more deserving of 
the high regard and good will of its inhabitants. He is a man of fine 
character, .commendable public spirit and elevated and representative 
citizenship, a genuine type of Linn county's best manhood, sterling in 
attributes and highly useful in productiveness, a valued force in con- 
nection with the progress of the county and an ornament to its social 
life. 



HON. EDWARD G. FETTY 

(Deceased) 

Receiving his summons to his final account suddenly on Saturday 
morning, December 11, 1909, after a serious illness of only a few hours 
duration, the death of the late Judge Edward Fetty, of Linneus shocked 
the whole community of which he had long been one of the most 
eminent and esteemed citizens, and shrouded it in universal gloom. 
His health had been frail for several years, and the people of his home 
city were so accustomed to his condition, in w^hich there seemed to be 
no change, that his sudden demise came as a great surprise to them, 
,and a corresponding source of profound and sincere grief. 

On the succeeding Monday his remains were borne to their last 
resting place, attended by a large part of the population of the city 
and many admiring friends of the deceased from other places, and were 
carefully consigned to the tomb with every manifestation of popular 
esteem and affection. He had lived among this people forty-four years 
without a blemish on his public or private life. He had been a farmer, 
a merchant and a banker in business relations, and in all these lines of 
usefulness had made conscience his guide and the ''golden rule" his 
code of ethics. He had also occupied an exalted and responsible official 
position as judge of the county court for two terms, and in the dis- 
charge of all his official duties, integrity had been his polar star, and 
had enabled him to hold a straightforward course over every sea, even 



392 HISTORY OF LIX?v^ COUNTY 

amid the raging tempests of political contention, warmly and heartily 
suiDported by his friends and followers, and uncensured by even the 
most radical of his opponents. Under such circumstances, it was in- 
evitable that the whole people should lament his death, and that every 
man, woman and child among them should feel a sense of personal loss 
in that event. 

Edward G. Fetty was born in Marion county, Virginia, now West 
Virginia, on March 20, 1843, and was a son of Hartley and Catherine 
(Roberts) Fetty, also natives of that state, who became residents of 
Sullivan county, Missouri, in 1851. The father w^as a clergyman of 
the Methodist Episcopal Church South, and warmly sympathized with 
the Confederacy during the Civil War. He found the atmosphere 
around him in his Missouri home uncongenial to his opinions at the 
beginning of that momentous conflict, and left the state. When "the 
war drums throbbed no longer and the battle flags w^ere furled," he 
returned to Missouri and located in Randolph county, where he died 
at the age of sixty-five years. His widow survived him a long time, 
passing away at Fayette, in this state, in 1908. They had thirteen 
children, eight of whom are living, four sons and four daughters, but 
none of them a resident of Linn county. 

Their son, the judge, began his academic training in the schools 
of his native state and completed it in those of Sullivan county, 
Missouri, where he located with his parents when he was eight years 
old. In 1862 he went West, and during the next four years lived in 
Idaho and Washington. He returned to Missouri in the autumn of 
1865, and on February 24, 1866, was united in marriage with Miss 
Cornelia Schrock, a daughter of Isaac and Charlotte E. (Burns) 
Schrock, prominent residents of Sullivan county. The young benedict 
and his bride at once selected Linn county as their future home, and 
in this county the judge passed the remainder of his days. 

For a number of years he was actively and extensively engaged in 
farming on a tract of very productive and highly cultivated land west 
of Linneus. In 1888 he was elected judge of the county court from the 
western district as the candidate of the Democratic party, and at the 
end of his term was re-elected. In 1891 he moved his family from his 
farm to Linneus and started an extensive business in the hardware 
trade. AVhen the Citizens Bank of Linneus was founded in 1905 he was 
chosen its president, and he was kept in that office to the great advan- 
tage of the bank until his death. He also served as president of the 
Linneus board of education and in numerous other public positions 
with marked ability. 



HISTOEY OF LIXN COUNTY 393 

By the very nature aud workings of his mind and character, Judge 
Fetty was a Democrat in faith and action. He believed in the integrity 
and common sense of the masses of the people, and at all times cham- 
pioned their rights and interests. So earnest, so sincere and so capable 
was he in his advocacy and defense of those rights and interests, that 
by common consent he was accorded a position of leadership in his 
party in this part of the state. He also followed the teachings and 
discipline of the Southern Methodist Episcopal Church in religious 
matters, and for many years was a member of the congregation of that 
sect in this city, taking an active part in all its good work and exercis- 
ing a strong and useful influence in its councils. His membership was 
serviceable to the church and highly appreciated by all who had the 
benefit of the activities it put in motion. 

While in the West, in his young manhood. Judge Fetty followed 
mining to some extent and with a fair degree of success. In the hard- 
ware business his son, Marcus B. Fetty, was associated with him for a 
number of years. He and his wife were the parents of three children, 
two sons and one daughter, all of whom are living, as is their mother. 
The children are: Marcus B., secretary and treasurer of the Superior 
Hay Stacker Manufacturing Companj^, of Linneus; Isaac H., who is 
general manager for the Central Coal and Coke Company, of Kansas 
City, Missouri ; and Edna, the wife of Dr. W. E. Adams, of Linneus. 

Marcus B. Fetty, tlie oldest son of Judge Fetty, was born in Linn 
county and educated in its schools. He was reared on his father's farm, 
drew his stature and his strength from its soil, and gained his social 
prestige and business capacity among its activities. All that he is he 
has become here, so that in all respects he is wholly a Linn county 
product and representative. After completing his education, he taught 
school for three years, then became associated with his father in the 
hardware trade, adhering to that line of mercantile enterprise until 
1903, when he was made secretary and treasurer of the large manufac- 
turing company with which he is now connected in that official capacity. 

Mr. Fetty is also a director of the Citizens bank and connected with 
other institutions of service to the city and county of his home. While 
warmly, intelligently and practically interested in public aifairs, he is 
not an active partisan, and has never sought or desired a political office 
of any kind, although he has served as a member and the president of 
the local school board in obedience to the urgent wish of the people. 
He is connected with the Independent Order of Odd Fellows and the 
Modern Woodmen of America in fraternal relations, and he and his 
wife are members of the Methodist Episcopal Church South. He ren- 



394 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

ders the congregation to which they belong excellent service as the 
superintendent of its Sunday school. 

Mr. Fetty was first married in 1889 to Miss C. Eva Wilhite, of 
Grant City, Missouri, and by this marriage became the father of one 
child, his daughter Viola. Her mother died in August, 1894, and in 
September, 1897, the father contracted a second marriage, being united 
in this with Miss Nellie V. Stephens, a native of Linn county, and at 
the time of her marriage a resident of Linneus. 



COL. E. C. BROTT 

Still hale, vigorous and active, although nearly ninety years of 
age, and still wearing the harness of public office, which was fitted to 
his form many years ago and has never since been put off, having en- 
joyed the pleasures of life as a farmer, dared its dangers as a soldier 
in the Civil War, and dignified and adorned it as a public official in 
various positions of importance from time to time before he was selected 
for the one he now holds, and having mingled with men in active pur- 
suits in three of the great states of the Union and lived in four, Hon. 
E. C. Brott, the present police judge of Brookfield, has had a very inter- 
esting and varied career. 

Judge Brott was born in Bath, Steuben county, New York, on 
December 7, 1824. His parents were Martin and Esther (Crandall) 
Brott, the former a native of New York state and the latter of Hartford, 
Connecticut. The father was a farmer and local preacher in the Metho- 
dist Episcopal Church. In 1830 he moved with his family to Medina 
county, Ohio, where he continued to farm and preach for a number of 
years. His wife died in that county in 1834. Sometime afterward the 
father married again, and later moved to Knox county, Illinois, where 
he died at an advanced age. 

By his first marriage he became the father of three sons and one 
daughter, all dead but our subject; and of a house full of children by 
the second. Five of his sons were Union soldiers in the Civil War, all 
entering the service from Knox county, Illinois. He was of German 
ancestry and inherited from his forefathers all the sterling and service-' 
able traits of character that distinguish the German people and make 
them so forceful, enterprising and progressive. With real German 
pluck he encountered all the difficulties of his trying life, and with real 
German persistency he battled with and conquered them. 



HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 395 

His son, the judge, was reared to the age of nineteen in Ohio, work- 
ing on his father's farm and as a clerk with a Mr. Royal Hammond in 
Bath; attending the primitive schools of the period and Smith's 
Academy in Bath, in the county of Snmmitt, which adjoins Medina on 
the east. In 1843, when he was nineteen years old, he bravely set out 
to make his own way in the world, and took a flight toward the sunset 
for the purpose. He drove across the country to Knox county, Illinois, 
making the trip in the winter. It was a journey of near seven hundred 
miles, as he was obliged to make it, through a country wild for the 
greater part and but scantily supplied with roads and bridges, and it 
entailed on him a considerable amount of hardship and some suffering. 
But his spirit and endurance were equal to the requirements, and he 
persevered in spite of every difficulty until he reached his destination in 
safety. 

On his arrival in the locality he had chosen for his new home 
he worked four years as a farm hand and received as part pay for his 
services eighty acres of land. When he married at the age of twenty- 
three years he took up his residence on this tract of wild land, which 
was still rich with the unpruned growth of ages and whose soil was yet 
virgin to the plow. He broke up his land and converted it into a 
valuable and productive farm, living on it and cultivating and improv- 
ing it until 1866, a period of twenty-four years in all. In 1860 he was 
elected sheriff' of Knox county, and served in the office until June, 1862, 
when he resigned under the fervor of his patriotic devotion to the Union 
and enlisted as captain of Company E, Eighty-third Illinois Volunteer 
Infantry. Before the regiment received its baptism of fire he was com- 
missioned major, and even prior to this he was offered the position of 
lieutenant-colonel in three different regiments, but declined all the 
offers in order to remain with his own company. 

The first engagement in which the regiment took part was the 
battle of Waverly, Tennessee, and the next that of the second battle at 
Fort Donelson, in both of which the Union forces were victorious. After 
the capture of the fort. Major Brott was placed in command of it by 
General Thomas. He held this command eighteen months, and was 
then ordered to conduct a train of supplies to the army at Nashville, 
Tennessee. In the advance of the Federal troops on Atlanta, Georgia, 
he was given the command of a brigade as a reward for meritorious 
service, and remained at the head of that brigade until his return to 
Nashville. 

Then General Thomas again assigned him to the command of Fort 



396 HISTORY OF LIXX COUNTY 

Donelson in response to a request for this action from several hundred 
citizens for twenty-five miles in and around the fort. He held this 
position to the close of the war and performed its duties with eminent 
satisfaction to the soldiers and people in the neighborhood of the fort 
and the Federal authorities over him in the field and at Washington. 
At the close of the war he was mustered out of the service with the rank 
of lieutenant-colonel, having won his promotion by his gallantry in 
action and his fidelity in every part of the service in which he was 
engaged. 

When Colonel Brott left the army he returned to Galesburg, Illi- 
nois, where he was soon afterward appointed deputy collector of inter- 
nal revenue, and this position he held until 1866, when he moved to this 
county and bought a farm, which he lived on and cultivated until 1893. 
He was elected sheriff of Linn county in 1870 and again in 1872, but 
prior to that time he did considerable construction work for the Han- 
nibal & St. Joseph Railroad between Cameron and Kansas City. 

In 1892 he was appointed a justice of the peace and soon afterward 
police judge of Brookfield. He has served the people well and wisely, 
and to their entire satisfaction in this office ever since. His political 
allegiance is given with unwavering devotion to the Republican party, 
and he is still active in its service in spite of his advanced age. He has 
been a member of the Masonic order since 1856, and has ascended its 
mystic ladder to the degree of Knights Templar, and is also prominent 
in the Grand Army of the Republic. 

Judge Brott was married in Illinois on February 15, 1848, to Miss 
Frances Vickery, a daughter of Ebenezer and Esther K. (Sheldon) 
Vlckery, old residents of Tompkins county. New York, where Mrs. 
Brott was born. She died on July 19, 1887, and all but three of her 
seven children are also dead. The three who are living are: Edwin B., 
a resident of the state of Nebraska; Katharine, the widow of the late 
W. H. Truax, whose home is in Delaware ; and Susan E., who is the wife 
of J. V. McCune and lives in Brookfield. 

Farmer, soldier and judge, this venerable patriarch has contributed 
to the success and advancement of American institutions and the glory 
of American manhood in three of the great fields of endeavor and 
sources of our strength, security and progress. He has lived worthily 
and servlceably among this people for nearly half a century, and now 
there is not one of them that does not do him reverence. If challenged 
to show a fine specimen of their manhood the people of Linn county 
might well point to Judge Brott and say, ''Where can his superior be 
found?" 



HISTORY OF LIXN COUNTY 397 

LORENZO S. BOWDEN 

Tliis venerable pioneer merchant of Brookfield, who has passed tlie 
hmit of human life as fixed by the psalmist, and is now retired from 
active pursuits, furnishes in his long and fruitful career a fine example 
of the value of industry, frugality and enterprise, in the business suc- 
ces he has achieved, and of the worth of upright living and useful citi- 
zenship, in the universal esteem in which he is held. 

Although not a native of the United States, he has lived in this 
country and in Brookfield forty-six of the seventy-three years of his 
life, and has become thoroughly devoted to its interests and its institu- 
tions. He was born in Bradford, Yorkshire, England, in 1838, and is a 
son of John and Elizabeth Bowden, also natives of that country, and 
belonging to families resident for many generations among its people 
and drawing their stature and their strength from its soil. 

Mr. Bowden grew to manhood and obtained his education in his 
native land, and after he left school learned his trade as a stairway 
builder there, serving an apprenticeship of five years at the craft and 
mastering it thoroughly in aU its details. In 1859 he came to Canada 
and located in Montreal, led to this continent by the persuasive voice of 
the New World which was pleading for volunteers in her great army of 
conquest over the wilderness and industrial development. 

He remained in the Dominion until 1865, then crossed the line into 
the United States, and being determined to try his fortune in some por- 
tion of the country's undeveloped interior, came to Missouri and took 
up his residence at Brookfield. Here he wrought zealously and profit- 
ably at his trade of general carpenter work three years, then turned his 
attention to another branch of productive industry, engaging in cabinet 
making and merchandising in furniture. He adhered to these lines of 
useful endeavor until 1892, when he sold his business to his son, Eich- 
ard N. Bowden, and retired to a life of relief from all business cares and 
active toil. 

He did not, however, give up his hold on all his sources of profit or 
sever his connection with the business world altogether. He is still a 
stockholder in the Linn County Bank and interested in other institu- 
tions of value in the commercial and industrial life of his community. 
Neither did he lose interest in the public affairs of his city and county 
or forbear his energetic and effective efforts to promote their develop- 
ment and improvement. He has served as alderman and acting mayor 
of Brookfield, and in many other ways contributed to the substantial 
and enduring welfare of the people in his locality. 



398 HISTOIJY OF LINN COUNTY 

In political faith, with reference to national affairs, Mr. Bowden is 
a Eepublican and loyal in his devotion to the good of his party. But 
he has never been an active partisan or felt any desire for political 
office, only consenting to serve in the ones he has held at the behest of 
his friends who wished through his wisdom, public spirit and devotion 
to the public good to secure the welfare of the city. In fraternal life 
he has for many years belonged to the Masonic order and the Order of 
Odd Fellows, and in religious connection to the Congregational church. 

He has been successful in business, acquiring a competency ])y his 
capacity and industry, and very useful as a citizen, winning a high and 
permanent place in the regard of the people aroimd him by his sterling 
manhood, unwavering integrity and faithful performance of every duty 
in public and private life. No man in Linn county is more highly or 
more universally esteemed, and none is more deserving of the good 
opinion and confidence of its inhabitants. His da,y has been one of toil 
and many trials. Its evening is calm and benignant, filled with the 
retrospect of years well employed, duties faithful^ attended to and 
services to his fellow men cheerfully rendered. It is also crowned with 
the cordial good will of the people among whom he has lived and lab- 
ored, and to whom his presence, his nativity and his example have been 
full of benefit. 

Richard N. Bowden, liis son and successor in business, who is still 
conducting successfully the mercantile enterprise he founded, was born 
in Canada on August 12, 1860, and came to Brookfield with his parents. 
He grew to manhood in this city and obtained a limited education in its 
public schools, his period of opportunity in this respect being short, as 
duty called him into business at the age of thirteen. In 1892, as has 
been stated, he bought his. father's establishment, and since then has so 
managed it that he has made himself one of the leading merchants in 
this part of the state in his line. 

He also has taken an active interest and a leading part in the 
development of the city and county of his home, giving attention in 
a practical and serviceable way to every undertaking designed to pro- 
mote the welfare of the people and augment the industrial, commercial, 
intellectual, moral and social power of his community. He was elected 
mayor of Brookfield in 1898 and served four years. During his second 
term iT> the office the paving of the city streets was begun through his 
producjive influence and admirably carried forward under the impulse 
of his enterprise and fine executive ability and his superior business 
capacity. 

Fraternally Mr. Bowden is a Freemason, an Odd Fellow and a 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 399 

member of the Order of Elks. He is devoted in his loyalty and very 
helpful m his services to his lodges in these fraternities, and in social 
circles is accounted one of the leading men in the city. In 1889 he was 
united in marriage with Miss Vina B. Ives. They have three children, 
two sons and one daughter, all of whom, like their parents, are held in 
the highest esteem throughout the city, in all parts of the county, and 
wherever else they are known. 



BERNARD J. C. BETTELHEIM 

(Deceased) 

With Romance playing its fantastic tints around his birth; with 
the danger of privation and violence overshadowing his childhood ; with 
this period of his life leading somewhat along the points and pinnacles 
of great affairs where History holds her splendid march ; with a ship- 
wreck and a rescue at sea on his way from the Orient to this country; 
with a residence of three years in one of the great states of the Ameri- 
can Union and one of ten in its rival for supremacy among our com- 
monwealths ; with forty-two years of active, practical business experi- 
ence in Missouri, and with Tragedy standing warder at his death and 
demanding its grewsome toll in the awful suddenness of that event — 
with all these varying threads running through its warp and woof, the 
life story of this late lamented business man and citizen of Brookfield 
is one of unusual and thrilling interest. 

Mr. Bettelheim was born on November 11, 1845, on board the Wil- 
liam Jardine, an English sailing vessel bound from London to Loochoo 
Island, Japan. His father, Bernard Bettelheim, was a native of Hun- 
gary, and a man of great learning. He was a graduate of the medical 
department of the University of Leipzig, Germany, and was sent to 
Japan in the interest of several London merchants to promote the silk 
industry. Being a devout and enthusiastic Christian, he also deter- 
mined to do missionary work among the people of the island to which 
he was sent. His wife, whose maiden name was Elizabeth M. Barwick, 
was born and reared in England. 

On their arrival at Hong Kong the parents had their infant bap- 
tized according to Christian rites, and named him Bernard James Gutz- 
luff Bettelheim. The activity of the father became offensive to the 
authorities of the island and he was thrown into prison, where he lan- 
guished until released through the mediation of Commodore Perry, the 
commander of the historic American fleet which opened the ports of 



400 HISTOEY OF LIXX COUNTY 

Japan to the trade of tlie world. Notwithstanding his imprisonment, 
the father acquired great influence over the natives at his station. He 
mastered their language and preached the gospel to them in their native 
tongue, and he also ministered to them when they were ill, and this 
dual service gave him a strong hold on their veneration and affection. 

During Commodore Perry's stay at the island the doctor was of 
great service to him as an interpreter, and through the commodore's 
friendship secured a safer footing with the authorities and greater 
freedom in his missionary work. After a residence of nine years in his 
Oriental home he brought his family to this country, taking passage on 
a sailing vessel bound for New York. It took nine months to make the 
voyage, and near the end of it the ship was wrecked in the neighbor- 
hood of the Bermudas. No lives were lost, however, and the Bettel- 
heim family reached its destination in safety, and lived in New Y^ork 
three years thereafter. 

At the end of the period mentioned the family moved to Pontiac, 
Illinois, and after living there ten years, came to Brookfield in 1868. 
Here the father died in 1870 and the mother in 1873. As is not unusual 
with the people of his native land, the doctor was an accomplished lin- 
guist, being able to speak and write fluently in twenty-six different 
languages at the time of his death. He was also a gentleman of fine 
social culture, high character and a stern sense of duty which made him 
very zealous in everything he undertook to do. The people of this 
country respected him highly, and in all the relations of life he proved 
himself worthy of all the regard they bestowed upon him. 

Bernard J. G. Bettelheim was twenty-three years of age when he 
came to Brookfield with his parents. Notwithstanding his numerous 
changes of residence and the unfavorable circumstances under which he 
passed his childhood, his education was carefully attended to, and he 
became an accomplished man in scholastic attainments, and was also 
thoroughly trained for business. He was not long in the city before he 
was launched on the fitful sea of mercantile life, and then, for nearly 
forty-two years, he was active, and during the greater part of the time 
one of the leaders in the business world of this part of the state. A 
few years before his death he gave up the active management of his 
business interests to his sons and passed the remainder of his days in 
comparative freedom from labor and care, enjoying a rest he had richly 
earned. 

On December 26, 1870, he was united in marriage with Miss Mary 
Eliza Roberts, a daughter of Dr. and Mrs. J. F. Eoberts, early settlers 
in Brookfield and accounted as among its most worthy and estimable 



HISTOEY OF LIXN COUNTY 401 

citizens. Eight children were born of the union, five of whom are liv- 
ing: Dr. B. F., a resident of South Dakota; E. F., who lives in New 
Mexico; and A. E., Mrs. H. C. Pratt and Miss Florence, all of whom 
reside in Brookfield. 

As has been intimated, Mr. Bettelheim's death was very sudden. 
It occurred in 1910, and without a moment's warning. During that day 
he was in the business section of the city and was apparently unusually 
well and in fine spirits. At four o'clock he went home, and sometime 
after arriving there, went out to do some chores about the place. When 
supper time approached and he did not return his daughter Florence 
went to look for him and found him lying dead in the back yard. His 
wife at the time was in Dakota. 

The announcement of his death shrouded the whole county of Linn 
in gloom and was a source of universal grief. His remains were laid to 
rest in Rose Hill cemetery, whither they were accompanied b}^ hosts of 
mourning friends and consigned to the tomb with every manifestation 
of popular esteem, the Masonic order, of which he had been an honored 
member, conducting the services at the grave. He has been greatly 
missed in religious and business circles, having been prominent in both 
during his long residence in Brookfield, and zealous in the service of 
all the interest involved in each, as he was in behalf of every worthy 
enterprise. 

He was a gentleman of extensive and varied information and one of 
the most successful business men the city has ever known. He was, 
moreover, a man of great but unostentatious liberality toward every 
commendable purpose, and generous almost to a fault in private char- 
ity. His church was a large beneficiary of his bounty, and all other 
churches had the benefit of his liberal aid. In the language of the old 
Latin poet, he was a man, and nothing that was human was foreign to 
him. The city and county of his home will not soon look upon his like 
again, if they ever do. But they show that they were worthy of him 
by the appreciation in which they held him and the veneration in 
which they cherish his memory. 



RICHARD T. SMITHER 

Tried by hardship, privation, hourly peril in war, reverses and 
disappointments in business, and hope deferred in many ways, Richard 
T. Smither, one of the prominent and successful real estate dealers of 
Brookfield, has practically laughed in their faces and proven himself 



402 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

superior to them all. He has been regularly successful in his opera- 
tions, even if there have been lapses at times and he has not always 
realized all he hoped for from his labors. In all circumstances and 
under all conditions he has been sustained by his own resourceful and 
self-reliant spirit, and this has ever dared Fate to do her worst. 

Mr. Smither is a Kentuckian by nativity, his life having begun on 
"The dark and bloody ground" at Mt. Sterling, Montgomery county, 
on April 1, 1849. His parents, Alexander and Cordelia (Hawkins) 
Smither, were also natives of Kentucky, and the latter died in that 
state in 1854. Soon after this sad event the father moved his children 
to Missouri, arriving in this state the same year his wife's death 
occurred, and located at Marion for a short time. From there he moved 
to Boone county, where he passed the remainder of his days, dying in 
that county. His forefathers were Tennesseeans, and early settlers 
in Kentucky. His father was a distiller and he a tailor. He and his 
wife were the parents of five children, all of whom are dead but 
Kichard T. 

Richard T. Smither grew to manhood in Jackson and Boone coun- 
ties, and obtained a limited common school education in their schools. 
In 1863, when he was but fourteen years old, he enlisted in the Confed- 
erate army as a member of Strode 's Company A of sharpshooters, 
which was under the command of General Price. The young recruit 
remained in the service to the close of the sanguinary contest and par- 
ticipated in many of its principal engagements. He had a horse shot 
under him at Fulton, where the spirit was high and the fighting fierce, 
even though the battle did not last long or take rank among the great 
ones of the war. 

Mr. Smither was mustered out of the service in May, 1865, and at 
once returned to his Boone county home, where he followed farming 
during the next ten years. He then clerked for a time at Clarksville in 
Pike county, and followed this experience by a period of ten years 
passed in business for himself in that county. In 1883 he moved to Linn 
county, located in Brookfield and opened a store in the hardware and 
implement trade, which he conducted for seventeen years. 

His finger was ever on the pulse of progress and he kept in touch 
with the genius of improvement that has been for years doing so much 
to increase the power and add to the comfort and convenience of man- 
kind. When the hour was ripe he united with others in founding the 
Electric Lighting Company and securing the erection and operation of 
its plant. This company has very largely engaged his attention and 
employed his faculties by its expanding business and growing demands. 



HISTORY OF LIXA^ COUNTY 



403 



He IS now its president and guiding and controlling spirit, and he 
devotes himself almost wholly to its management. At the same time he 
IS zealous and energetic in his support of other public improvements 
giving valuable and appreciated aid to every worthv undertaking for 
the advancement and betterment of his locality. 

The public affairs of the city and county of his home also engage 
his interest m an effective way, and he does his part toward giving them 
proper trend and guidance. In political faith and adhesion he is con- 
nected mth the Democratic party, but he has never desired or sought 
public office, although he has always been an active worker for the 
success of his party. In fraternal relations he is a devoted member of 
the Masonic order, with which he has been connected from his earlv 
manhood. 

nf T^^'^''''^ i^' '^^P:^^ ^^^ m^Tvied to Miss Sallie T. Ship, a daughter 
o± r. B. and Sarah (Fisher) Ship, pioneers of Pike county. No chil- 
dren have been born of the union. Mr. and Mrs. Smither are widely 
known troughout the county, and everywhere they enjov in a marked 
degree the confidence and regard of the whole people. They are known 
to be upright and useful citizens, representative of all that is most 
worthy and estimable in Linn county citizenship, and are esteemed in 
accordance with their demonstrated merit, and their agreeable social 
qualities, genuine benevolence and other admirable characteristics. Mrs 
femither is a faithful working member of the Presbyterian church and 
prominent m all the activities of the congregation to which she belongs 
and m which her membership is highly valued. 



JOHN B. PATRICK 

T^^ versatility and ready adaptiveness of the American mind to 
all kinds of business, to all the requirements of official life, and to every 
demand of circumstances, whatever they may be, is so well known and 
I. IV ^^'^ illustrated by impressive examples and described in 
published narratives that it has become not only an oft-told, but almost 
a trite and well-worn tale. Yet, in some lives among us there are such 
specihc features, and such unusual combinations that their story is 
worthy of detailed narrative, even though much that is told in them 
seems like tame and unprofitable repetition of general history 
^ Some of these specific features and unusual combinations are found 
m the career of John B. Patrick, of Laclede, this countv. He is the 
leadmg hardware merchant, grocer and furniture dealer of the town 



404 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

He has been a farmer, a merchant, a farmer again, the owner and 
manager of a livery barn and once more a merchant, and has made 
every line of endeavor in which he has engaged minister to his welfare 
and advancement and contribute to the general weal of the community 
in which he has operated. 

Mr. Patrick was born in Livingston county, Missouri, on February 
3, 1864, and is the son of John M. and Margaret (Warren) Patrick, the 
former a native of Virginia and the latter of Kentucky. The father was 
brought to Missouri in his boyhood by his parents, and passed his life 
in Livingston county. For a number of years he taught school, and 
then passed the rest of his life as a farmer. He died in 1867 at the age 
of fifty-five years, universally respected as a good man and useful 
and progressive citizen. 

The mother was a daughter of Thomas Warren, a pioneer of 
Howard, Boone, Randolph and Livingston counties in this state, who 
died at Chillicothe, Livingston .county, after many years of creditable 
living and usefulness as a merchant and farmer, leaving the mark of 
his influence in each of the four counties named as one of the founders 
of their civilization and aids in establishing and building up their civil, 
educational and religious institutions of every kind, and giving charac- 
ter and tone to their citizenship. 

Five children, two sons and four daughters, were born in the 
parental household of Mr. Patrick, of whom he and three of his sisters 
are living. Their mother survived their father twenty-nine years, pass- 
ing away in 1896. She was ardent in her devotion to the welfare of her 
offspring and zealous in care and attention to them to the end of her 
days, and when she died full of years and with a long record of use- 
fulness to her credit, she was one of the most revered matrons in the 
w^hole county of Linn. 

John B. Patrick grew to manhood on his father's farm in Livings- 
ton county and obtained his education in the public schools near his 
home. After completing their course of study he followed farming 
until he reached the age of thirty years, then for ten years was engaged 
in the livery business and grocery trade at Wheeling in his native 
county. At the end of the period mentioned he returned to farming and 
adhered to it three years. But his fondness for mercantile life remained 
with him and kept insisting on attention, and in 1907 he yielded to its 
persuasive voice. 

In that year he moved to Laclede and purchased the mercantile 
establishment of C. E. Hilton there, which he has ever since conducted. 
The business includes grocery, furniture and hardware departments, 




EEV. CALVIN ALLEN 



HIlSrrOKY OF LIXX COUXTY 405 

and also a cream station and cold storage room which is the largest in 
the county. He has given his business close and careful attention, 
pushing his trade to the limit of his opportunities, and making every 
effort in his power to keep pace with the progress of trade and the 
requirements of the community in which he operates, and all accounts 
agree in attesting that he succeeds admirably in these laudable designs. 

But Mr. Patrick has not confined his interest in business and the 
welfare of the community to his merchandising operations. He has 
taken part in other institutions of value much to their benefit and the 
advantage of the people around him generally. He is a stockholder 
in the Central States Life Insurance Company of St. Louis, and con- 
nected with other fiscal and promotive agencies in Laclede and else- 
where. He is a wide-awake and enterprising man, and always at the 
front in behalf of any worth}^ undertaking for the progress and improve- 
ment of his township and county. 

On January 7, 1900, he w^as united in marriage with Mrs. Elva 
Thomas, a widow whose maiden name was Rickett and who was born in 
Ohio. She had one child by her former marriage, Elliott W. Thomas, 
w^io is still living with her and Mr. Patrick. At the time of her mar- 
riage she was a resident of Wheeling, Livingston county, and there the 
marriage occurred. Mr. Patrick is a Democrat in politics but not an 
active partisan. Fraternally he is connected with the Modern Wood- 
men of America, and in religious affiliation is a devout member of the 
Christian Church. He is widely known throughout the county and is 
everywhere held in high esteem. 



REV. CALVIN ALLEN 

The record of a long life of faithful and self-sacrificing usefulness, 
of valuable services performed in many fields of labor, without present 
compensation or hope of future reward in a material way, is always a 
pleasing one to write, and it is also full of influence and incitement for 
good to those who read it. For the facts in the narrative, however 
crudely and imperfectly set forth, are in themselves suggestive and bear 
their own comment without the aid of word-painting or any of the 
embellishments of art. 

A pleasing task of this nature is furnished the publishers of this 
work in the case of Rev. Calvin Allen, of Laclede, who is now in the 
eighty-fifth year of his age, retired from active pursuits, and able to 
share in the benefits of the civilization, industrial and mercantile con- 



406 HISTORY OF LINX COUNTY 

ditions and moral, intellectual and social advantages lie has helped 
so materially to create and build up for the people of Linn county. His 
long day of toil and trial is over. He bore faithfully its heat and bur- 
den, and is now resting calmly and peacefully amid the mild glories of 
its late evening, with the fruits of his fidelity beaming around him on 
every side and contributing to his comfort and general happiness. 

Mr. Allen was born near Paint Eock, Campbell county, Tennessee, 
on October 26, 1827, and moved to Indiana with his parents about the 
year 1836, when he was nine years old. The family located on a farm 
in Daviess county, in that state, and on that farm the son grew to man- 
hood, obtaining what education he could get in the district school in the 
neighborhood of his home. Its course of instruction, however, was not 
sufficient to more than give him a start in mental training. His own 
reading and studies have since done the rest, and made him a very well- 
informed and cultivated man. 

In 1854, with his young wife and the children they then had, he 
came to Missouri, making the journey from his Indiana home with ox 
teams and experiencing many hardships and privations on the way, 
through portions of which every hour of the twenty-four was fraught 
with peril from Indians who were still roaming in their wild state in 
various localities along the route, and night was ever made hideous 
with the terrifying howls of beasts of prey in search of their predatory 
livelihood. 

On his arrival in this state Mr. Allen took up government land in 
Grundy county, for which he paid seventy-five cents an acre, it being 
prairie land. The timber land to be had at the time sold at two dollars 
an acre, which was more than he could afford to pay. He remained in 
Grundy county engaged in farming four years, then entered the 
Missouri Conference of the Methodist Episcopal Church on probation 
with a view to devoting the remainder of his life to preaching the gospel 
and doing pastoral work among the people of this region. 

Mr. Allen's first appointment in the Christian ministry was to 
Albany circuit in Gentry county and two other counties in the same 
scope of territory. The circuit embraced the greater part of the three 
counties and had twenty-seven charges requiring attention. He found 
his work exacting, the claims on his time and energies exhausting, tjie 
recompense for his services in a worldly way so meager as to give him 
very little for provision for his family, and the prospect for improve- 
ment in the conditions next to nothing. But he was impelled by a high 
sense of duty and persevered in the arduous labor for twenty- three 
years. 



HISTORY OF LIXN COUNTY 407 

He was first on probation four years, then regularly in the ministry 
nineteen years, entering the conference in 1858 and being placed on its 
superannuated list for six years in 1881. In 1887 he was placed per- 
manently on the superannuated list, and he still belongs to the Con- 
ference as a superannuated member, having been connected with the 
organization continuously for fifty-three years. He settled at Laclede 
in 1881, and has resided there ever since. While he still does minis- 
terial work occasionally, he has not been regularly active in the harness 
for a long time, although he has never lost an iota of his interest in 
the labor. 

In July, 1847, he was united in marriage with Miss Elvira Crook, 
a daughter of *'Boss" Asa Crook, who was a Kentuckian by nativity. 
Six children were born of the union, only one of whom, Edmund B. 
Allen of Laclede, is now living. A sketch of his life will be found in 
this work. The mother died in Laclede on February 1, 1890. She was 
a noble pioneer woman, heroic in spirit, ready to undergo any labor, 
face any peril or endure any hardship for the benefit of her family, the 
good of the people with whom she mingled and associated, or the fur- 
therance of the work in which her husband was engaged. Her memory 
is enshrined in the affectionate regard of all who knew her, and the 
force of her example is still potential wherever she lived and exhibited 
her loftiness and strength of character. 

The father, although a man of peace, and devoted to the spread of 
the doctrine of good will among men, has always had a high ideal of 
patriotism and been ardent in seeking to promote the welfare of his 
country. During the Civil war he was a member of the first regiment of 
enrolled militia in this state, which, when he joined it, was known as 
Colonel Kimball's Reserves, but is now usually designated as the Home 
Guards. In this organization he was always ready for field duty, if it 
should be required, and was faithful to every claim of the service, what- 
ever was involved, meeting his obligations where the salvation of the 
Union was pi stalce with the same high sense of duty that impelled him 
when the salvation of immoral souls was the supreme and impressive 
issue. 

Rev. Calvin Allen has lived among the people of Linn county for 
thirty-seven years. His life among them during all of that period has 
been an open book, and it has not a stain on any of its pages. The 
residents in all parts of the county know him well, and there is not one 
in all their number that does not do him reverence. Although so far 
advanced in years, his body is still vigorous and active, his mind is 
strong and clear and his heart throbs as intensely for the good of 



408 HISTORY OF LTXX COUNTY 

humanity as ever. The burden of his years has stayed his once ready 
hand in its great activity, but nothing can dim the lustre of his deeds 
or take away anything from the admirable record he has made. He is 
approaching his ''narrow house and his long sleep" attended by the 
veneration and loving esteem of all who know him, and the evening 
anthem of his long day is medolious with the tributes of approval which 
thousands to whom he has ministered bestow upon him. "Mark the 
perfect man, and behold the upright; for the end of that man is peace." 



JONATHAN J. HENDERICKS 

For fifty-six years Jonathan J. Hendericks, of Brookfield, has been 
a resident of Linn county, and during all of that long period has been 
connected directly or indirectly with its farming industry. He has 
been actively engaged in the real estate business during the last sixteen 
years, but even in connection with that he has been more or less in 
touch with the farming industry of the county, and may therefore be 
properly said to have been a farmer, or an adjunct to agricultural work 
from his boyhood to the present time (1912). 

Mr. Hendericks is a native of Virginia, and was born in Tazewell 
county in the Old Dominion on October 25, 1842. His parents were 
Mark and Sarah (Scott) Hendricks, also born in Virginia, the former 
in Montgomery and the latter in Tazewell county. The father was a 
blacksmith and also followed farming. In 1843 he determined to seek 
better opportunities than his state seemed to afford him on the virgin 
soil of the West, and loading his household goods on a wagon, started 
for Missouri overland. He did not get out of his native state, however, 
for death overtook him at Kanawha in that part of it which is now 
West Virginia. 

The mother returned to the old home with her young child, over- 
whelmed by her great bereavement, and without the nerve at the time 
to try her fortune alone in a new country so far from the friends and 
associations of her childhood, youth and young womanhood. She re- 
mained there eleven years, and was then seized with another longing for 
the West, and brought her family to Randolph county in this state, 
v»rhere they passed the first winter. The next spring the family moved 
to Linn county and located near Linneus, some time afterward moving 
to Bucklin township, the mother in the meantime having contracted a 
second marriage in which she united herself with a Mr. Carter. By 



HISTOEY OF LI^N COUNTY 409 

her marriage with Mr. Hendericks she had two sons, but Jonathan is 
the only one of the two now living. 

He was twelve years old when the family came to this state, and 
nearly thirteen when it located in Linn county. He attended the old- 
time country schools of the period, which were kept for a few months 
during the winter in a rude log shack furnished with slab benches, and 
in them acquired all he ever got in the way of scholastic training. At 
an early age he began life for himself as a farmer, and that occupation 
he followed steadily until 1900. He experienced all the hardships and 
privations of frontier life and all the diffi,culties of converting a tract 
of wild land into a productive and well improved farm, doing this on 
160 acres in Bucklin township when the whole region surrounding him 
was still largely unoccupied and almost an unbroken wilderness. 

In 1883 he bought a farm near Brookfield, which he lived on and 
cultivated until 1895. He then sold it and turned his attention to 
dealing extensively in real estate and carrying on an insurance business, 
in which he is still engaged. His operations have steadily grown in 
magnitude until now they have reached large proportions and given 
him a very considerable business. He is considered an excellent judge 
of property and has broad and comprehensive knowledge on the subject, 
making him a judicious adviser for both buyers and sellers, and causing 
him to be called into almost daily consultations with reference to it. 

While he did not go far from home during the Civil War, he took 
part in it as a member of Company H, Second Missouri Provisional 
Regiment, which rendered valuable service to the state guarding the 
Hannibal & St. Joseph Railroad for a year and a half, from the fall of 
1863 to the close of the war. Mr. Hendericks was corporal of his com- 
pany. The regiment took part in no actual hostilities, but was always 
prepared for the worst, and on several occasions was very near an en- 
gagement in deadly combat. 

Mr. Hendericks was married in 1874 to Miss Cynthia J. Ramsey, a 
native of Indiana and a daughter of George and Polly (Broadhurst) 
Ramsey, who came to Linn county in 1844. No children have been 
born of the union. The head of the house is a Republican in his political 
faith and allegiance, and his services to his party have always been 
active and well appreciated by both its leaders and its rank and file. 
He has served as a justice of the peace and township trustee. He is a 
Freemason of the Royal Arch degree in fraternal relations. As a 
citizen he is regarded as sterling and representative of the best in the 
county. As a man of public spirit and enterprise, both in his own affairs 
and those of the county, he is esteemed as an influential force, resource- 



410 HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 

ful and progressive, wise in counsel and energetic and effective in 
action. In all the relations of life he is known to be correct and com- 
mendable, and the people of the county have for him universal respect 
and good will. 



ROBERT R. SMITH 

Orphaned when he was but little over one year old by the death of 
his father, and by this sad bereavement forced to begin the struggle for 
a livelihood and advancement among men at a very early age, Robert R. 
Smith of Brookfield, this county, has been wholly the architect of his 
own fortune, the maker and director of his own career, the source and 
medium of all his triumphs in life. In business, in social circles and in 
the bright record he has written for himself in the chronicles of the 
great fraternity of which he is now one of the highest officials and has 
long been a shining ornament and a potent for,ce for good, he has made 
his own way without the aid of Fortune's favors or advantageous cir- 
cumstances at any time. His capital has been his high character, his 
native ability, his persistent industry, his determined self-reliance and 
his genial and benevolent disposition. These assets, freely invested 
wherever he has lived, have brought him in excellent and rich returns 
in the good will and esteem of the people, and given him prominence 
and popularity in every line of endeavor he has tried. 

Mr. Smith's life began near Findlay, Hancock county, Ohio, on 
February 6, 1863. He is a son of Reuben and Christina (Boyles) Smith, 
the former a native of Ohio and the latter of Pennsylvania. The father 
was a farmer, and during a part of the Civil War served in the Ohio 
state militia. He died in 1863, when his son was still an infant, and 
left the care of him and the four other children in the family to the 
mother. 

This excellent woman felt her bereavement keenly and deeply 
mourned the great loss she had sustained. But she also realized in- 
tensely her heavy responsibility in the rearing of her children, and 
she put everything else aside in order that she might meet that fully. 
With the fortitude and courage of a Roman matron she entered upon 
the performance of her duties in this respect, and she never abandoned 
them for a moment until they were discharged to the full extent and in 
the best manner her circumstances would allow. She brought her five 
children to Linneus in June, 1866, and here continued the devoted care 
of them she had begun in her former home. Sometime after her arrival 
in this county she was married a second time, uniting herself in this 



lilSTOEY OF LINX COUNTY 411 

marriage with a Mr. Haymaker. Her first husband was a son of John 
W. Smith, who died in Ohio, leaving two sons and one daughter at the 
time of his demise. 

Robert E. Smith grew from the age of three years to manhood in 
Linneus and obtained a limited education in the public schools of that 
city, attending them in winter for a few years and working in the 
summer at anything his willing hands could find to do. His great 
desire was to lighten the burden of family care borne by his mother, to 
whom he was faithful and fervent in filial devotion. When he was 
eleven years old he became a bread-winner, first as a clerk in a grocery 
store, then as a farm hand. Earnestly desirous of better pay for his 
time and labor, he next accepted employment as a section hand on a 
railroad. From this occupation he went to clerking for a lumber dealer, 
and from that to clerking in a dry goods store. 

Mr. Smith's brave, manly heart won him friends in early youth who 
have stood by him in all his vicissitudes in life, and in every position he 
held he won the good will of both his employers and the patrons of their 
business. From the start his aim was high, and in all circumstances his 
efforts were zealous and well applied. His progress, too, although very 
slow and painful at first, was steady always, and after a time became 
more rapid, easy and agreeable, and widening opportunities gave him 
scope for more decided and far-reaching usefulness. 

His general popularity was handsomely demonstrated in 1892, 
when he was elected treasurer of Linn county by a majority of 240 
votes. In that election every other candidate of his party but two was 
defeated. So well did he perform his duties in this office, that at the 
end of his first term he was elected for another by a majority of 640 
votes. At the close of his second term he was invited to enter the mer- 
cantile firm of Hartman & Tooey as a stockholder and the secretary of 
the company, which was then the largest capitalized corporation in 
northern Missouri. This has since become the Tooey Mercantile Com- 
pany, and Mr. Smith is now its vice president. It is a leader among the 
mercantile institutions of Brookfield, and has few if any rivals in 
magnitude and extent of business in this part of the state. 

Mr. Smith is also a stockholder in the Linn County Bank, and a 
director and the treasurer of the Inter-Ocean Life and Casualty Com- 
pany of Springfield, Illinois, which he founded. His political allegiance 
and services are given to the Republican party, to which he is loyally 
devoted. For some years he was a member of its state central com- 
mittee of Missouri. He was married on January 25, 1888, to Miss Sallie 
E. Phillips, a daughter of John C. Phillips, whose life story is briefly 



412 HlSTOliY OF LINX COUNTY 

told on another page of this work. Mr. and Mrs. Smith have two sons 
and two daughters : Calvin 0., who is a graduate of the University of 
Chicago and now a student in the law department of Harvard; and 
Maurice R., Catherine and Virginia, who are living at home with their 
parents. 

Mr. Smith has from his early manhood taken a very active interest 
in fraternal organizations, in two of which he holds appreciated mem- 
bership. He belongs to the Independent Order of Odd Fellows and the 
Modern Woodmen of America. In the latter of these he has been par- 
ticularly zealous and effective in service, and has risen to a very high 
official position in its government, being at this time chairman of its 
general board of directors, an office to which he has been chosen by the 
Head Camp of the fraternity in annual sessions. 

In 1898 he was elected Venerable Consul of Brookfield Camp No. 
2127, and under his guidance in a few years the camp more than doubled 
its membership. In 1901 he became a candidate for Head Banker of the 
fraternity, a position requiring both business ability of a high order 
and incorruptible integrity. He was unanimously chosen to the posi- 
tion by the Head Camp that year. In this office he demonstrated so 
clearly that he was sterling and fitted for any responsible position in 
life, that in 1903 he was elected a member of the general board of 
directors, and since then has been made chairman of the board. 

The membership of the Modern Woodmen of America is very 
large. It is an insurance order, and as such its funds are greater than 
those of any other insurance fraternity in the world. It covers a vast 
territory in this country and others, and its interests are multitudinous 
in number, great in magnitude and extensively diversified in character. 
Its head banker has enormous responsibilities and its directors are 
heavily burdened with them also. To win not only distinction but uni- 
versal approval and commendation in either position is a high tribute 
to a man's business capacity and unyielding integrity. To win this in 
both is a triumph that is attainable by few men and must be based on 
genuine merit of the most exalted kind in him who achieves it. Mr. 
Smith has shown that he has such merit. 



OSCAR F. LIBBY 



In his own history and that of his parents Oscar F. Libby of 
Laclede, this county furnishes a fine illustration of the migrations of 
the American people from one part of the country to another, their 
changes of occupation from time to time, according to the circumstances 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 413 

in wliich they find themselves, and their universal and masterly adap- 
tiveness to conditions whatever the requirements of those conditions 
may be. He and his parents were born in far-away Maine, lived in 
three other states before becoming residents of Missouri, and both he 
and his father changed their occupations whenever opportunities were 
presented for profitable ventures in new or different lines of endeavor. 
These are experiences common in our history, but they argue no want 
of steadfastness or stability on the part of our people. On the contrary, 
they are proofs of the great alertness, restless activity and genius for 
conquest in all domains of activity of the American mind, and out- 
growths or causes of the enterprise which has made our nation so rich 
and great and given us so commanding a rank among the leading pow- 
ers of the world in arms, in arts, in industries and in commerce. 

Oscar F. Libby's life began in Cumberland county, Maine, on 
December 9, 1852, and he is a son of Nathaniel S. and Sarah (Freeman) 
Libby, also natives of that state and county, where the father was 
born on January 14, 1830. In March, 1855, led by the richness of the 
prairies of the West, he left his native state and moved his family as it 
was then to Greene county, Illinois, but only remained there two 
months. He then moved to St. Croix county, Wisconsin, and there pur- 
chased 160 acres of school land. 

The region in which he made his purchase did not seem to him at 
the time the best for the exercise of his enterprise, and accordingly he 
changed his residence and base of operations temporarily to Goodhue 
county, Minnesota, where he took up a tract of government land of 160 
acres. In the fall of 1855 he went back to the pineries of Wisconsin, 
and passed the winter there logging with oxen. The next spring he 
began to improve his Minnesota land, and became a prominent man in 
the region of its location. He was a member of the first board of trus- 
tees of Roscoe township in Goodhue county and assisted in organizing 
the county. 

He lived in that county until he proved up on his land, then traded 
it for $200, a yoke of oxen, a cow and a log chain, which was thought to 
be a first rate deal for that period. In May, 1861, he again crossed the 
Mississippi river to his St. Croix county, Wisconsin, land and began 
to improve that. In time he made a fine farm of it for the state of 
development then considered advanced and then left it for other new 
and untried regions and fresh fields of conquest over the wilderness. 

It was in October, 1869, that he brought his family to Linn county, 
Missouri, and located at Laclede. Soon afterward he moved to a farm 



414 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

three miles north of that town, where he resided until his death, which 
occurred on July 20, 1901. He was married in April, 1851, to Miss 
Sarah Freeman, also a native of Maine and a daughter of Oeorge Free- 
man of that state. Of the eleven children born of the union ten are 
living: Oscar F., the immediate subject of this sketch; Walter, who 
is a resident of Cheyenne, Oklahoma ; Ernest L., whose home is at Linn 
Creek, Camden county, in this state ; Lucy F., who is still residing on 
the family homestead north of Laclede ; Sarah M., now the wife of I. H. 
Watson of Brookfield ; Lucius E., who is also living on the homestead ; 
Lottie L., who is now the wife of Charles Sternkey of Brookfield ; John, 
who has his home at Bonne Terre, St. Francois county, Missouri ; Grace, 
who married with William F. Havner and is living at No. 308 North 
Fifth street, Kansas City, Kansas ; and Maria H., who is now Mrs. Carl 
E. Brown of Clarimere, Oklahoma. 

Oscar F. Libby obtained the greater part of his scholastic training 
in Wisconsin, being about eighteen years old when the family moved 
to this state and county. But after his arrival here he attended public 
schools in Linneus and Laclede. At the age of twenty he began teach- 
ing in the public schools of the county and adhered to that profession 
for twelve terms. While engaged in teaching he also studied law at 
home, and in June, 1878, was admitted to the bar. Since then he has 
been busily occupied in his profession, and steadily rose in rank in it 
until in 1906 he was elected judge of the county court for a term of 
two years. 

Mr. Libby is a Democrat in political faith and allegiance, but he has 
never been desirous of public office and has never sought official station 
either by appointment or election. His being chosen county judge was 
by motion of the people of the county, who knew his ability and high 
character, and without any solicitation on his part. He has, however, 
always been active and energetic in connection with public affairs, and 
in every way open to him has shown his deep and abiding interest in 
the progress and development of his county and the enduring welfare of 
its people. 

On September 27, 1882, Mr. Libby was joined in wedlock with Miss 
Eebecca J. Watson, a daughter of James H. and Rebecca J. Watson, 
the former a native of Missouri and the latter of Chariton county, 
Missouri. Six children have been born in the Libby household, five of 
whom are living: Oscar F., Jr., whose home is in Kansas City, Missouri ; 
Harry J., who is a resident of Shelbina, this state ; and Louis, Mary V. 
and Bertha E., who are still at home with their parents. 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 415 

L. A. MOORMAN 

With the native quickness of perception, resourceful adaptation 
to circumstances, and readiness for any requirement, which he inherited 
from his Irish ancestry, well trained by an excellent education, and all 
his faculties still warm with the fire and energy of young manhood, L. 
A. Moorman, manager and treasurer of the Moorman Lumber Com- 
pany of Marceline, which he founded, is well worthy of the high hopes 
entertained of him as a business man and a wide-awake, enterprising 
and progressive citizen. He has high character and strict integrity to 
back his other qualifications for success in life, and his industry leaves 
no hour go by without pajdng its tribute to liis advancement in life 
and the benefit of whatever he has in hand for his own welfare or that 
of other persons. 

Mr. Moorman is a native of Missouri, having been born in Chariton 
county on August 23, 1875. He is a son of Benjamin F. and Mary 
(Shands) Moorman, the former a native of Kentucky and the latter of 
Virginia. The parents moved to Missouri in 1864 and located in Char- 
iton county. They farmed in that county for a number of years, but 
are now living retired from active pursuits in Marceline. Of the chil- 
dren born of their union four sons and one daughter are living. The 
ancestors of the father came from Ireland to this country at an early 
day and settled in Virginia. Some of their descendants moved to Ken- 
tucky when it was still largely a wilderness, and others have since 
become residents of Missouri. Wlierever they have lived they have 
followed the occupation of the old patriarchs and been farmers. 

L. A. Moorman was reared to manhood in Chariton county and 
began his education in its public schools. He attended the Keytesville 
High School and the Normal School at Kirksville, and afterward the 
University of Chicago. His aim was to qualify himself as a high grade 
teacher, and after leaving the university he taught in the public schools 
of this count}^ for a period of eleven years, the earlier part of the time 
at various places in the country districts, then two years as principal 
and five as superintendent of the schools in Marceline. His influence 
for good in the management and improvement of the Marceline schools 
was considerable and is still felt and acknowledged by teachers and 
school patrons alike. 

In 1911 he resigned as a teacher and school oJBficial and turned his 
attention to the lumber trade, purchasing the business of the late W. 
D. Brown, deceased. In order to give himself a wider sweep and 
greater resources in the business, he organized the Moorman Lumber 



416 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

Company, with himself as general manager and treasurer, but with the 
wisdom of others interested in the company to add to his own for the 
general advantage of all. The company is prospering finely under his 
management and its trade is increasing rapidly. He stood high in the 
estimation of the public as a school teacher, and he has now won general 
confidence and esteem and many warm encomiums as a business man. 

Mr. Moorman has always been deeply and practically interested in 
the development and improvement of his township and county, and has 
never hesitated to do his full share of the work of promoting their 
advancement. In political faith and allegiance he is a member of the 
Democratic party and consistently loyal and serviceable to it. In fra- 
ternal relations he is connnected with the Masonic order, in which he 
has advanced to the degree of Knights Templar. In religious faith he is 
a Presbyterian, and an earnest worker in the congregation to which he 
belongs. 

On December 6, 1906, Mr. Moorman was united in marriage with 
Miss Eugenia M. Ringo of Kirksville. Like her husband, Mrs. Moor- 
man is well educated, and like him she is sincerely, warmly and intelli- 
gently interested in the welfare of Marceline, Bucklin township and 
Linn county. Although her manifestations of local patriotism cannot 
cover all the ground and be active in all the channels of usefulness that 
have the benefit of Mr. Moorman's acti^aty, in her own department of 
helpfulness she is as energetic and genuinely serviceable as he is in his. 
Both have a high place in the estimation of the public and a strong hold 
on the confidence, regard and esteem of the whole people, including 
every class. 



JOHN M. ANDERSON 

(Deceased) 

The late John M. Anderson, who died in Bucklin township, this 
county, in 1899, was one of the pioneers of that portion of the county 
and one of its most substantial and esteemed citizens. Besides the 
romance and hardships attending his coming into the wilderness and 
hewing out a farm from its broad expanse of unbroken soil, in a time 
when the region in which he located was largely unpeopled and still 
infested with its savage denizens, ferocious Indians and beasts of prey, 
his life had many adventures and incidents of much more than ordinary 
interest. And throughout the course of it he presented a manly front 
to every opponent, whether of man or circumstance, and alwaj^s main- 



HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 417 

tainecl liis independence, self-reliance and upright and elevated position 
among Ms fellow men. 

Mr. Anderson was a native of the Old Dominion, having been born 
in Prince Edward county, Virginia, about the year 1807. He was a son 
of Milton Anderson, who was also a native of Virginia, and a life-long 
resident of that state, where he died at a good old age. The son 
remained at the place of his birth until he reached the age of twenty- 
nine years, and was educated and married there. After attaining his 
majority he engaged in farming, and followed that occupation in Vir- 
ginia until 1836, when he moved his family to Missouri and located near 
Brunswick in Chariton county. 

The journey from his old home to his new one, which was then one 
of considerable extent, was made with teams, and he brought his slaves, 
live stock and household equipment with him. It was a long and tedious 
trip, and not without peril in many parts ; for the Indians were at all 
times likely to be hostile, the common necessaries of life were difficult of 
attainment, roads were few, bridges in many places unknown and ford- 
ings undetermined as to depth and safety. But he and his wife were 
resolute in spirit and strong in courage, and they persevered to the 
end of their long journey, through the unknown to the unknown, and 
reached their destination, with all their belongings, in safety and com- 
parative comfort. 

The family remained in Chariton county about two years, then 
moved to Linn county, finding another new home on government land 
which the father took up a short distance west of Bucklin. He broke up 
and cultivated this land, erected as good buildings for the shelter of his 
family, his live stock and his crops as he could under the circumstances, 
and lived on it until his death in 1899, the year in which his wife also 
died. At the beginning of the Civil War he owned some 1,500 acres, 
and had about 300 acres fenced and a large portion of it under culti- 
vation. The war cloud threatened him in every way. Party spirit ran 
high along the border and there were many indications that the war 
would be predatory and respect neither life nor property on either side, 
which is always the case in border warfare. Mr. Anderson's sympa- 
thies were with the South, and he took his slaves and stock, with his 
family, to Texas, establishing himself on a farm which he bought near 
Sherman, the county seat of Grayson county in that state. He remained 
there until after the close of the war and then came back to his Linn 
county home. 

Mr. Anderson was married in Virginia to Miss Mary Hubbard. 
They had eight children, five sons and three daughters. Two of the 



418 HISTOEY OF LIXN COUNTY 

sons and three of the daughters are living: Robert L., who resides in 
this comity; Hezekiah, a resident of Marceline; Mary, who lives with 
her brother on the homestead ; Emma, who is now the wife of Thomas 
B. Glasgow of this county; and Edward, who lives on and farms the 
land occupied by his parents during their lives. 

The father was a Democrat in political faith and party allegiance, 
and an energetic and effective worker for the success of his organiza- 
tion. But his zeal was inspired by conviction and principle, and had 
no element of personal ambition in it, as he never sought, desired or 
would accept a political office of any kind, either by appointment or 
election. He was prominent as a farmer and influential as a citizen 
throughout the county, and enjoyed extensive popularity among all 
classes of its people. Before the end of his long and useful life he 
became a patriarch among them, and received the veneration due to 
such a rank. And it must be said to his credit that he deserved the 
good will and regard so richly bestowed upon him, as he was upright 
and straightforward in all the relations of life, and true to every duty 
of his manhood. 



BRADFORD McALLISTER 

From a tidewater county on the coast of Maine to a wholly agricul- 
tural one in the interior of Missouri ; from the shores of the Atlantic to 
the prairies of the West, beyond the great Father of Waters ; from tlie 
hazards and stirring life of the manufacturing, fishing and otlier indus- 
tries of the East to the remote and quiet pursuit of tilling the soil and 
the occupations allied with and growing out of that in the Middle West, 
is a far step; but it is one which the interesting sul)ject of this brief 
review has taken with advantage to himself and to the people here, 
among whom he brought by it the energy, resourcefulness and enter- 
prise indigenous to his native state, and the ingenuity and adaptiveness 
characteristic of its people. 

Bradford McAllister has shown that he has the adaptiveness of the 
residents of his native section of the country by seizing and harnessing 
opportunity for his service as they have come to him, and by ready 
coalescense with new conditions and his enterprise in making the most 
of them. For, whether he was connected with the fishing or the manu- 
facturing industry, or with neither, whatever his occupation might have 
been in the region of his birth, the conditions and requirements for men 
of mold and progressiveness, and the opportunities offered them there 
were very different from those of the region in which he now lives ; and 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 419 

lie has been as ready in his use of what has been offered here as he could 
have been in what was available there, and probably has made as much 
progress, if not more. 

Mr. McAllister was born in Waldo county, Maine, on August 6, 1846, 
and is a son of Alfred and Waitie (Foster) McAllister, also natives of 
that state. The father was a general merchant there, and there the 
mother died. They were the parents of five sons and one daughter, all 
of whom are now deceased except Bradford and one of his brothers. 
After the death of the mother the father married again. He brought 
his family to Missouri in 1866 and located in Carroll county, where he 
engaged in farming, remaining in that county until his death, which 
occurred there. 

Bradford McAllister, wliq is of Scotch-Irish ancestry, and whose 
grandfather was a soldier in the Revolutionary War, grew to the age 
of twenty years in his native state, obtained a common school education 
there, and after leaving school learned the trade of a blacksmith and 
carriage maker. He came to Missouri with his father, and after his 
arrival in this state farmed for a number of years. He also kept a 
store in Carroll county seven years. He prospered in both enterprises, 
and on coming to Marceline in 1891 began business in operating a dray 
and express service, of which he was the sole owner and manager, and 
which he carried on for sixteen years, handling ice throughout an exten- 
sive scope of territory in connection with that business. His business 
became large and it opened his eyes to a new opportunity, which he lost 
no time in embracing. 

At the end of the period named he bought the creamery of which he 
is now the head, and took his sons into the business with him, and it has 
since been conducted under the firm name of B. McAllister & Sons. He 
also founded the bottling works, which he operated some time. Since 
his purchase of the creamery it has been rebuilt and enlarged, and in 
connection with it a large silo and commodious barns have been erected. 
The firm owns a fine herd of cows as one source of supply for the 
creamery. It sells ice cream, butter and other creamery products exten- 
sively and continues to handle ice and carry on the dray and express 
line. Its business is extensive and active, and requires the energy and 
close attention of all the members of the firm in its various departments. 

On March 13, 1869, Mr. McAllister was married to Miss Malinda J. 
Brown, a native of Missouri. They have had twelve children, ten of 
whom are living : Charles A., M. Emma, William A., Ralph N., Chester 
B., Ross, Olive A., Hazel B. and Earl. The father is a Socialist in his 
political faith and takes a considerable interest in the affairs of his 



420 HISTOEY OF LINX COUNTY 

party. He is also earnestly interested in the progress and development 
of Ms township and county, and is widely and favorably known as an 
enterprising and public-spirited citizen, always ready to bear his part 
of the burden of cost, labor and influence necessary to carry out new 
undertakings for the general welfare of his locality and bring them to a 
successful conclusion. Throughout the county he is well esteemed in 
business circles, for his devotion to the duties of citizenship and as a 
man. The other members of the family share in the good opinion and 
general regard bestowed on him. 



FRANK M. WOLFE 

A native of Knox county, Illinois, a resident for some years of 
Chariton county in this state, and having his home in Linn county con- 
tinuously since 1882, Frank M. Wolfe, now (1912) postmaster of Marce- 
line, has had experience of a varied kind in several residences, and has 
attended schools under a considerable variety of circumstances, and 
secured his education under somewhat difficult and trying conditions. 
But he has been game from his boyhood, and always faced his difficul- 
ties with a manly and resourceful spirit and a determination to make 
the best of whatever has befallen him. This spirit has been his main 
reliance and has won him success. 

Mr. Wolfe's life began on June 14, 1868, in the great prairie state, 
and when he was but six years old the family moved to Missouri and 
located in Chariton county. Eight years later, that is in 1882, they 
all changed their residence to Linn county, and this has been the family 
home ever since the year last named. Mr. Wolfe is a son of Warren 
and Sarah E. (Buck) Wolfe, the former born in Iowa and the latter in 
Illinois. The father is a retired farmer, having given up active work in 
the management of his farm in 1910, after carrying on its operations 
twenty-eight years. 

In 1863, during the progress of the Civil War, he enlisted in the 
Twenty-fourth Illinois Volunteer Infantry in defense of the Union, and 
in that regiment he served to the end of the great conflict which so 
nearly dismembered our country and was so costly in blood and treas- 
ure. He was with General Sherman on his historic march to the sea, 
and also took part in a number of battles, but while frequently in the 
very deluge of death in some of the great engagements of the war, he 
escaped unharmed except by the hardships and privations of the serv- 



HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 431 

ice, which were considerable to him, as he was in the midst of the most 
active and telling requirements most of the time. 

Mr. Wolfe, the elder, and his wife were the parents of seven sons 
and four daughters, all of whom are living. Frank M. was the second 
in the order of birth. He obtained his education in country schools, and 
for some years after the dawn of his manhood followed farming. He 
then turned his attention to merchandising, in which he was engaged 
for seven years in Marceline. He was appointed postmaster of Marce- 
line on August 5, 1909, and has held the office continuously since that 
time, rendering the people very acceptable service and making an excel- 
lent record in the office. 

Mr. Wolfe has been a life-long Republican in his political faith and 
allegiance, and has long rendered his party good service, both by his 
wisdom in counsel and his energy and effectiveness in action. Frater- 
nally he is a member of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, and in 
religious affiliation he is connected with the Methodist Episcopal 
Church. He takes a very active and serviceable interest in the affairs 
of his lodge and his church, and his membership in both is highly appre- 
ciated by the other members, who find him very effective as a worker 
for the good of the two organizations and enterprising in promoting 
their welfare. 

On December 2d, 1892, Mr. Wolfe was united in marriage with Miss 
Mabel E. Burch, of Linn county. They have three children. Ruby, The- 
resa B. and Fern M., all of whom are still members of the parental 
family circle. All the members of the family are highly esteemed 
throughout their township and in other parts of the county for their 
usefulness and worth as members of their community and as citizens 
generally, and they are fully deserving of the high regard in which they 
are held. 



DR. JOHN L. BURKE 

For the greater part of thirty-five years a physician and surgeon in 
active practice in times of peace, and during the Civil War a Union 
soldier, Dr. John L. Burke, of Laclede, has shown his interest in the 
welfare of his fellow-men and his devotion to his country in practical 
service to both. He comes of a military family, too, being of the third 
generation of his male line that has taken up arms in defense of Ameri- 
can liberty and the preservation of the Union and its institutions. 

He was born at Morgantown, Butler county, Kentucky, on January 
11, 1847, and is a son of Dr. Bartlett J. and Amanda H. (James) Burke, 



422 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

also natives of Kentucky. The father completed his professional edu- 
cation in the medical department of Louisville University and prac- 
ticed in his native state until 1856. In that year he moved to Tazewell 
county, Illinois, where he practiced nine years. At the end of that time 
he came to Missouri and located in Livingston county, moving later to 
Lathrop in Clinton county, going there in 1868, and being the first 
physician there. 

The father served during the Civil War in the Seventieth and the 
One Hundred and Forty-fifth Illinois Volunteer Infantry, enlisting in 
1863, and remaining on duty to the close of the memorable and san- 
guinary conflict. At one time he was elected captain of Company A, 
the One Hundred and Eighth Illinois regiment, but he never served in 
that capacity, being retained all the time as hospital steward. During 
his residence at Lathrop he was a justice of the peace for a number of 
years. In fraternal life he belonged to the Grand Army of the Republic 
and the Masonic order. 

His father, James Burke, was also a native of Kentucky. He was 
a son of John Burke, who came to this country from Ireland in 1760 and 
helped to win independence for the United States as a soldier in the 
Revolutionary War. On his arrival in this country he located in North 
Carolina, and during the Revolution served in a North Carolina regi- 
ment. He died near Richmond, Indiana, and was for some years before 
his death on the Revollitionary pension roll of the country. 

Dr. John L. Burke's mother died in 1883 and his father in 1905. 
They were the parents of eleven children, six of whom, five sons and one 
daughter, grew to maturity. One of the sons was killed in the Civil 
War, and four of the eleven children are yet living. The doctor, who is 
the immediate subject of this brief review, was reared in Kentucky and 
Illinois and attended the district schools in both states. When the Civil 
War began he enlisted in the Union army twice, but was rejected each 
time on account of his youth. He was accepted in 1864 as a member of 
Company D, One Hundred and Forty-fifth Illinois Volunteer Infantry, 
and served in that company one hundred days, the full term of his enlist- 
ment. In 1865 he enlisted again in Company D, One Hundred and 
Fifty-second Illinois regiment, with which he remained until the close 
of the war. He was in the Missouri campaign during his first service 
and was assigned to the duty of guarding prisoners in Illinois ; also saw 
service in middle and west Tennessee during last enlistment. 

After receiving an honorable discharge from the army the doctor 
returned to Illinois, but remained there only a few weeks, then came to 
Missouri with the rest of the family. Here he taught school for a time 



HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 433 

and studied medicine under tlie instruction of his father. In 1877 he 
began practicing as an under-graduate, and attended lectures at the 
Missouri Medical College during the terms of 1878, 1879, 1880 and 1881. 
On receiving his diploma in the year last named he came at once to 
Laclede, and has lived here ever since. Prior to going to the medical 
college he lived five years in Kansas, but nearly the whole of his mature 
life has been passed in this state and thirty-one years of it at Laclede. 

On February 27, 1873, the doctor was married to Miss Mary F. 
Moss, a native of Livingston county, Missouri. They have had four 
children, three of whom are living : Dr. Foster W. Burke, of Laclede ; 
Louise H., who is now the wife of Alvin C. Lippitt, of Meadville, Linn 
county ; and William E., who is a resident of Brookfield. The father is 
a Republican in political faith and allegiance, but is no longer an active 
partisan. He belongs to the county, state and Grand river medical 
societies, is a Freemason and an Odd Fellow in fraternal connections 
and a member of the Methodist Episcopal church. He also holds active 
and appreciated membership in the Grand Army of the Republic. Offi- 
cially he is a member and the president of the United States Pension 
Board for Linn county. No citizen of Linn county is more highly 
esteemed, and none is more truly deserving of the high regard in which 
he is held by all classes of the people. 

Dr. Foster W. Burke, the son of Dr. John L., was born in Clinton 
county, Missouri, on September 29, 1874. He obtained his education in 
Linn county, being but seven years old when his parents located at 
Laclede, and is a graduate of Brookfield College. He began the study 
of medicine in 1894, entering for the purpose what was then Marion 
Simms Medical College but is now a part of the St. Louis University. 
He was graduated from that institution in 1897, and has since then been 
actively engaged in practice at Laclede, with a steadily increasing 
patronage and growing popularity as a physician and citizen of fine 
attainments and high character. 

The doctor belongs to the county, state and Grand river medical 
societies and the American Medical Association. He is also a member 
of the United States Pension Board for Linn county and the secretary 
of the board. In politics he is a Republican and active in the service of 
his party. He has been a member of its county central conunittee twelve 
years and for six chairman of it. For two years he has been a member 
of the state committee. Fraternally he is connected mth the Order 
of Odd Fellows and the Order of Elks, and in religious affiliation with 
the Methodist Episcopal Church. 

On October 20, 1906, the doctor was united in marriage with Miss 



434 HISTORY OF LIXX COUNTY 

Georgia E. Maxey, of Kansas City, Missouri. They have one child, their 
son Foster W., Jr. Mrs. Burke's father, Stephen Maxey, was a soldier 
in the Confederate army under Greneral Price. He was a native of Ken- 
tucky. He died a number of years ago. His wife, whose maiden name 
was Sarah Templin, and who is still living, is a native of Ohio. 

Dr. Burke, the younger, is one of the most prominent and promising 
young professional men and civic forces in Linn county. He is thor- 
oughly informed and very skillful in his professional work, stands high 
as a citizen, is a sunbeam in social gatherings, and has shown himself 
to be deeply and intelligently interested in the wholesome progress and 
enduring welfare of his township, county and state. The people all over 
the county know him well and favorably, and they all esteem him in 
accordance with his universally acknowledged worth, ability and 
enterprise. 



E. W. TAYLER 



The leading druggist and the oldest merchant in continuous busi- 
ness in Marceline, E. W. Tayler has earned the high place he holds in 
the business world of this part of the country, and as he has also been 
public spirited and progressive in connection with the development and 
improvement of the city and county of his home, he is well deserving 
of the cordial esteem which all classes of the people bestow on him with- 
out stint. He is not a native of Missouri, but has lived in the state from 
infancy, and was not reared in Linn county, but has dwelt among its 
people and taken part in their activities for almost a full quarter of a 
century. He is therefore imbued with their spirit, deeply interested in 
their welfare and feels a just and commendable pride in their achieve- 
ments, in which he has borne his part in full measure and with 
eagerness. 

Mr. Tayler was born in Galesburg, Illinois, on March 14, 1869, and 
before the end of that year was brought by his parents to Missouri and 
found a new home in Chariton county. He is a son of Edward H. and 
Emma J. (Wilmot) Tayler, the former a native of the state of New York 
and the latter of Illinois. The father w^as a farmer and located on a 
tract of wild land in Chariton county on his arrival in this state in 1869. 
He devoted himself exclusively to the improvement and cultivation of 
his farm until the spring of 1887, when he opened a general store on the 
farm for the purpose of supplying the needs of the workmen who were 
then building the Santa Fe Railroad. During the winter of the same 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 425 

year he moved the store to Marceline and restricted himself to the drug 
trade. 

He continued to carry on the business until March, 1901, when he 
retired and turned it over to his son, who is still conducting it. The 
father is now living in Oakland, California. His wife died in 1895 after 
long years of usefulness and upright living, true to her duties as a wife 
and mother, devoted to the welfare of her children and serviceably 
interested in the good of every community in which she lived. They 
had two children, one of whom has died. The father was a very pro- 
gressive and useful citizen during his residence in this part of the 
country. He was one of the earliest promoters of the coal mining 
industry at Marceline, and helped to finance the first mine opened here. 

His father, Thomas H. Tayler, grandfather of E. W. Tayler, was 
born on the Isle of Wight, England, and was brought to the United 
States by his parents when he was ten years old. The family located in 
New York state, and in 1848 Thomas H. became a pioneer in the neigh- 
borhood of Galesburg, Illinois, keeping a tavern twelve miles north of 
that city, where he died. He married with Miss Lydia Strouse, and 
they became the parents of four sons, two of whom are living. 

E. W. Tayler was reared on his father's farm and obtained his 
academic education in the public schools. He pursued a course of 
special training for business at the Avalon (Missouri) Commercial 
College, then entered his father's store as a clerk and student of phar- 
macy, of which he acquired a knowledge in the most practical way. He 
soon secured such a mastery of the science that he became a registered 
pharmacist after passing a highly creditable examination in the manner 
made necessary by the law. 

Mr. Tayler remained in association with his father until the latter 
retired, then took charge of the business himself, since which time he 
has been its sole proprietor. It is enough, in description of him as a 
merchant, to say that he has kept pace with the progress of the times 
and is strictly up to date in his business. He studies the needs of the 
community and the best way of providing for them, both in his general 
line of drugs and chemicals, and in the other articles of merchandise 
that are usually allied with that in trade. As a pharmacist he is well 
qualified in the profession by extensive and accurate knowledge and 
in practical skill and genuine conscientiousness in the application of 
that knowledge. 

On September 6, 1893, Mr. Tayler was united in marriage with Miss 
Jessie Null, a daughter of Dr. A. C. Null of Sumner, Chariton county, 
Missouri. They have two children, their sons Viers W. and Willard L. 



426 HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 

The father is a Democrat in political faith and allegiance and warmly- 
interested in the success and continued supremacy of his party, seeing 
in its principles and their general application to public affairs the best 
guarantee of good government in city, county and nation. He has given 
the community excellent service for a number of years as a member of 
the school board. Fraternally he belongs to the Order of Odd Fellows 
and the Masonic order. The people of Linn county esteem him highly 
as a citizen and as a man, and he has a very considerable and helpful 
influence among them. 



HARRY K. WEST 



The whole city of Brookfield and county of Linn, as well as a large 
part of the surrounding country was thrown into grief and gloom by the 
untimely death of the late Harry K. West, which occurred on June 16, 
1907, when he was at the height of his usefulness and but forty-seven 
years old. The vacancy in the professional and social life of the com- 
munity occasioned by his demise was keenly felt at the time and has not 
been filled. His memory is cherished and revered as that of one of 
the best citizens and most progressive and useful men in the county, as 
well as one of its most eminent lawyers and leaders of thought and 
action in all that ministers to the advancement of the county and the 
substantial welfare of its people. 

Mr. West was born in Putnam county, Illinois, on February 23, 
1860, and was brought to Linn county, Missouri, by his parents when 
he was but ten years old. He grew to manhood in this county and was 
educated in its schools. An account of the life of his parents, Robert 
N. and Susan K. (Mills) West, will be found in a sketch of his brother, 
Henry J. West, on another page of this volume. As soon as the young 
man completed his scholastic education he began reading law under the 
direction of Major A. W. Mullins of Linneus, and he made sucli. prog- 
ress in his preparatory studies that he was admitted to practice in 1881. 

He remained at Linneus until 1887, and by that time had built up 
a considerable practice and gained a high reputation for the extent and 
accuracy of his legal knowledge and his ability, skill and conscientious- 
ness as a practitioner. In the year last named he removed to Marceline, 
where he lived and labored at his professional work until 1899, then 
changed his residence to Brookfield, where he passed the remainder of 
his days. 

Soon after locating in Brookfield Mr. West formed a partnership 
for the practice of his profesion with T. M. Bresnehen, a sketch of 







/x^^i^^ 



HISTORY OF LIXN COUNTY 427 

whom will be found in this work, and this partnership lasted until Mr. 
West's death. He made an excellent record as a member of the firm 
and helped to carry its name to the first rank in the profession Jn this 
part of the country, being regarded as one of the most capable and 
upright lawyers in the county. He was also widely and favorably 
known in other parts of the state, and everywhere was highly esteemed 
as a man and an enterprising and progressive citizen, whose example 
was stimulating and whose influence was potential in connection with 
all matters involving the good of his city, county and state. 

On December 26, 1883, Mr. West was married to Miss Lena E. 
Crawley of Keytesville. They became the parents of five children, all 
of whom are living but the first born. The mother and two of her 
children live in Brookfield, where they are crowned with the esteem and 
good will of the whole population and looked upon as very useful 
factors in the activities of the community which aid in promoting the 
mental, moral and social welfare of the people and raising the standard 
of the city in the estimation of the rest of the state. 



ALBERT ZURCHER 

From the mountains of Switzerland, and their air of freedom, 
independence and self-reliance, to the plains of Missouri, with their 
wide expanse and atmosphere of equal independence and greater oppor- 
tunity, is a long step, but one which many a man has taken with advan- 
tage to himself and benefit to the community in which he has located. 
The Swiss people are full of manhood, resourcefulness and adaptibility 
to circumstances, and the great American republic is indebted to no 
class of its foreign population more than to them, in proportion to their 
numbers, for the great and gratifying progress it has made. And that 
it knows how to appreciate them when they have real merit is shown 
by the universal esteem bestowed upon Albert Zurcher of Marceline, 
one of their best representatives. 

Mr. Zurcher 's life began in the city of Biel, in the land of William 
Tell and Arnold Winkelreid, in 1882. His parents, Gotfried and Anna 
(Bosiger) Zurcher, were also born in that city, and there they have 
passed the whole of their lives to the present time (1912). The father is 
a watchmaker of great skill and reputation, and carries on a flourishing 
business in the city of his nativity. The mother is also still living. Of 
their six children three are sons, and two of them are residents of 
Marceline. Two of the three daughters also reside in the United States. 



428 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

The third son and one of the three daughters in the family still have 
their home in Switzerland, and are variously engaged in the diversified 
productive industries of that interesting country. 

Albert Zurcher was reared to the age of twenty years in his native 
land and obtained his education there. He began working at watch- 
making when he was but fifteen years of age, and wrought at the trade 
in his native city for five years. At the end of that period, in 1902, he 
came to the United States, and secured employment at his trade at 
Waltham, Massachusetts, w^here he remained one year. He then passed 
three months at South Bend, Indiana, and from there moved to Chicago, 
where he remained a short time. From Chicago he changed his resi- 
dence to Elgin, Illinois, and in 1908 came to Marceline, Missouri. Here 
he bought the business of Percy Welkins, which the latter had con- 
ducted for twenty years. 

Soon afterward Mr. Zurcher was made watch inspector for the 
Santa Fe Railroad at this point, he being an expert in that line of 
business, and this trust he still holds, having given great satisfaction 
to the railroad company and all its employes with whom he has had to 
deal. He has enlarged his business in many ways in his ejfforts to keep 
up with the times and the requirements of the community in which he 
is operating, and now" has the largest stock in the county in his line 
of commodities and the leading business of his department of trade in 
Marceline. In addition to his wide and comprehensive stock of w^atches 
and fine jewelry he handles musical instruments, and is unusually well 
informed as to the value and capacity of every character and grade of 
the music making devices he has for sale. 

Mr. Zurcher takes a cordial interest in the fraternal life of the 
community as a member of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows. He 
also takes an active and serviceable part in everything designed to 
promote the welfare and advance the interests of Marceline and Linn 
county. He believes in America and American institutions, and does all 
he can to increase their power and augment their usefulness. He 
believes also in Missouri and Linn county, and in no behalf is he more 
energetic and zealous than in theirs, whatever may be the issue at stake. 

Mr. Zurcher also takes an active interest in his business, locally and 
collectively. His own trade is large, and gives him good opportunities 
to note the trend and tendency of the business. Besides, he is a gentle- 
man of more than ordinary capacity in his domain of industry, and is 
wideawake and alert to its requirements. He realizes that the jewelry 
and watch trade is a progressive one, and he welcomes every agency 
that will aid him to keep in its front rank and meet all the demands of 



HISTOEY OF LINX COUNTY 439 

sucli a position. For tliis reason he is an active and energetic member 
of the American Jewelers' Retail Association and takes a prominent 
part in its proceedings. 

He was married on May 23, 1909, to Miss Margaret Breslich, a 
native of Elgin, Illinois, and at the time of her marriage a resident of 
that city. They have one child, their daughter Elise. Her father is 
regarded as one of the most upright and progressive citizens of Mar- 
.celine, and throughout Linn county he has a high reputation for his 
skill and capacity as a jeweler, an enterprising and progressive business 
man and an elevated and patriotic, as well as public spirited and far- 
seeing citizen. 



THOMAS P. OVEN, M. D. 

(Deceased) 

Brought to this country an infant two years old, Dr. Thomas P. 
Oven, of Brookfield, knew little of his native land except what he learned 
by reading and observation. He was therefore thoroughly American, 
and showed his interest in the country by aiding in its development, 
progress and improvement, and the substantial and enduring welfare 
of its people wherever he lived. His residence of thirty years in Brook- 
field was prolific of good for the city and its people, and they accorded 
him the full measure of approval and appreciation his merit and 
services entitled him to, which gave him the highest rank in public 
esteem and admiration. 

Dr. Oven was born on October 17, 1848, in Herefordshire, England, 
and was a son of John and Margaret (Eckley) Oven. The father was of 
the same nativity as the son, and the mother was born and reared in 
Exefordshire, England. They were married in England and lived there 
until 1850, when they came to the United States, landing in the city of 
New York. The father was a blacksmith and farrier, and also a licensed 
practitioner of medicine to the extent of giving first aid to the sick and 
injured. He used simple remedies in his practice and was very skill- 
ful and successful in the application of them. 

On his arrival in the city of New York the father felt the tug of the 
West on his heartstrings, and gathering his household goods about him, 
drove overland to Detroit, Michigan. There he followed his trade of 
blacksmith and practiced medicine until his health failed, then settled 
on a farm near Saline, in that state, on which he passed the remainder 
of his days, dying in 1857. He was a very skillful mechanic, and, as has 



430 HISTORY OF LIXN COUNTY 

been suggested, a successful practitioner of his simple art of healing, 
and was widely and favorably known in many parts of the state. 

The father was married twice. His first wife died in England, 
leaving two children for him to rear and care for. Of his second mar- 
liage, which was with the mother of the doctor, six children were born, 
four sons and two daughters, all of whom are now deceased but 
his brother Theophilus J., who lives in Dearborn, Michigan. Their 
mother died in 1874, having lived to see her children rise to standing 
and consequence among men. 

Dr. Thomas P. Oven grew to manhood and obtained his academic 
education in Detroit, Michigan, and institutions not far from that city. 
For a number of years he attended a seminary near Adrian, from which 
he was graduated in 1872. It was a Quaker school, and while attending 
it he necessarily imbibed many of the tenets and practices of the sect 
which conducted it. These were of great value to him in his 
subsequent career because of their humanitarian essence and the inter- 
est they create and foster in all mankind, and the genuine desire they 
beget for the promotion of the welfare of the whole human race. 

In the winter of 1873 the doctor taught school and in the spring of 
1874 he began the study of medicine under the direction of Dr. E. S. 
Snow, of Dearborn, Michigan. He read the teachings of his profession 
studiously for two years with Dr. Snow as tutor, and during that period 
attended a course of lectures in the medical department of the State 
University at Ann Arbor. He completed his course at the University 
the next year and received the degree of M. D. from it in June, 1876. 
Afterward he attended a course of lectures in special training in the 
University of New York, and in the spring of 1877 he obtained from 
that institution also the degree of M. D. Later he broadened, ripened 
and augmented his professional knowledge by attending special courses 
of lectures at polyclynic colleges in Chicago and Philadelphia, and by 
active membership in the American Medical Association, the Missouri 
State and the Linn County Medical Societies, and the Northeastern 
Missouri Medical Society. 

In March, 1877, Dr. Oven came to Missouri to live, and located at 
Milan, Sullivan county, where he practiced until February, 1881. At 
that time he took up his residence in Brookfield, and there made his 
home, and was actively engaged in a general practice until his death 
which occurred January 25, 1912. During the past twenty-seven years 
he was the surgeon of the Burlington Railroad system, and after his 
residence in the city began was one of its most prominent, successful 
and esteemed physicians and surgeons. 



HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 431 

On August 30, 1881, the doctor was united in marriage with Miss 
Clara M. Crumpacker, a daughter of D. H. and Emma E. (Wilson) 
Crumpacker, of Milan. The marriage has resulted in the birth of two 
children, one now living, Gerald D. Oven, now aged seventeen, and 
attending school. The father was a Republican in politics and a zealous 
worker in the interest of his party, but he was never desirous of a 
political office and never sought to get one. Fraternally he was con- 
nected with the Modern Brotherhood of America, holding his member- 
ship in Lodge 121 in Brookfield; also the Elks of Brookfield. 



DR. REZIN T. FOWLER 

There is high credit due to the pioneer in any line of activity in a 
community, and there is also something of heroism in bearing such a 
relation to its people. For the fact implies something of daring and a 
spirit of adventure. The field may be unoccupied and free from com- 
petition, but its possibilities have not been developed, and the person 
who starts the work takes all the chances of success or failure in his 
venture. If he have force of character, strong resolution and caj^acity 
for the work before him that he can rely on, the problem is in most 
cases already settled. For circumstances yield to persons so equipped, 
and their success is assured in advance, whatever the odds against 
them. 

The professional career of Dr. Rezin T. Fowler, the pioneer dentist 
of Marceline, is a striking case in point. When he started to practice 
his profession in this place the municipality was but four years old and 
had scarcely risen from its cradle. What its stature and its strength 
were to be, was as yet wholly undetermined, although it was a lusty 
infant and full of promise. The country around was sparsely settled, 
and the tide of immigration was neither large nor constant. But Dr. 
Fowler had perseverance, and determined to await its development, 
believing that it was destined to a prosperous and progressive existence. 
His faith has been fully justified, and he is to be commended for main- 
taining it at all times. 

Dr. Fowler is a native of Brown county, Ohio, where his life began 
on April 18, 1849. He is a son of Rezin and Eleanor (McElfresh) 
Fowler, the former born in Ohio and the latter in Pennsylvania. The 
father was a farmer in his native state until 1851, when he moved to 
Iowa. In 1855 he brought what family he then had to Missouri and 
located in Knox county. The trip was made by water as far as possible, 



432 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

the family journeying down the Mississippi to the landing place most 
convenient to its destination, and then traveling overland by teams to 
the new location chosen for its home. 

The father became prominent and influential in the county soon 
after his arrival. When the Civil War began he recruited the first 
company for the defense of the Union in Knox county. This company 
afterward became a part of the Home Guards of the state. Mr. Fowler 
served in it nine months. He and his wife were the parents of six 
children, three sons and three daughters. Two of the sons and one of 
the daughters are living. Their mother died in 1890 after many years 
of usefulness to her family and of faithful performance of duty in every 
way. 

The doctor grew to manhood in Knox county and was educated 
in the public schools. He followed farming until he reached the age 
of thirty-six. He then began the study of dentistry, and in the winters 
of 1889-90 and 1890-91 attended the Kansas City Dental College, from 
which he was graduated in the spring of 1891. He began practicing at 
Keytesville, and remained there about one year. In 1892 he moved to 
Marceline, where he has ever since resided and been in active practice. 
He knows his profession is a very progressive one, and he has made the 
efforts in reading and study necessary to keep pace with its progress. 
He has long been a member of the State Dental Association, and is up to 
date in every department of his work, although he is the oldest dentist 
in Marceline and one of the oldest in Linn county, both in years and 
in length of continuous practice. 

Dr. Fowler was first married in 1883 to Miss Cora M. Speer, and by 
this marriage became the father of two children, one of whom grew to 
maturity but is now deceased. His first wife died in 1888, and in June, 
1891, he married a second, uniting himself with Miss Lutie Wright, of 
Kansas City, Missouri, on this occasion. She still abides with him and 
presides over their pleasant and genuinely hospitable home, which is a 
popular resort and held in warm admiration by the numerous friends of 
the family. 

The doctor has taken a good citizen's part in the public affairs 
of his city, township and county, but he has never sought or desired 
a political office of any kind. He votes and acts with the Eepublican 
party in national affairs because he believes in its principles, and in 
local matters his first and only consideration is the general welfare of 
the community without regard to party politics. His religious connec- 
tion is with the Methodist Episcopal church, and he takes an active 
part in its work, and in promoting and extending its usefulness. 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 433 

Dr. Fowler is quiet and unostentatious but sterling and serviceable 
in Ms citizenship. He stands high in his profession in the regard of 
both his professional brethren and the general public. So,cially he is 
genial and companionable with all men worthy of his association, and in 
his business he is not only knowing and skillful as a practitioner, but 
strictly upright and straightforward in all his dealings. He is alto- 
gether a genuine and worthy representative of the best citizenship of 
the county, and is everywhere so regarded and esteemed accordingly. 



THOMAS M. LUDDEN 

Trained in the knowledge of men and of himself by several years 
experience in teaching school, and with residences in various places, 
which gave him a good knowledge of the country, Thomas M. Ludden, 
one of the leading real estate, insurance and loan agents in Linn county, 
whose home and base of operations is at Marceline, brought to his 
present business a good foundation in actual preparation for it in a 
general way, and an ambition to succeed in it that would not stop to 
consider difficulties or obstacles of any kind that might lie in the way 
of his progress. His success has been commensurate with the native 
and acquired ability he has shown, and in accordance with the self- 
reliance and resourcefulness that have been a large part of his working 
capital. 

Mr. Ludden is a native of Clinton county, Ohio, where his life began 
on July 21, 1866. His parents, Bernard and Anna (Kilday) Ludden, 
came to this country from Ireland, where the father was born in 1826. 
Before braving the wintry bosom of the Atlantic for the land of un- 
exampled bounty in resour.ces and opportunities, he passed a period in 
England, where he was employed in a cotton mill. But in 1848, when 
he was twenty-two years old, he emigrated to this country and took 
up his residence in Clinton county, Ohio, where he was engaged in 
farming for a period of twenty years. 

In 1868 he moved his family from Ohio to Missouri, finding a new 
home on a wild tract of land in Adair county. This land he has made 
over into a well improved and highly productive farm, which he still 
lives on and cultivates. The farm furnishes a fine illustration of the 
fruitfulness of nature improved and rendered serviceable by art. The 
persuasive hand of the husbandman has tamed its wildness, reduced it 
to systematic productiveness, and greatly increased its fertility. It has 
also been built into a comfortable and attractive rural home, and be- 



434 HISTORY OF LlXiS^ COUNTY 

come an asset of considerable value as a marketable piece of mer- 
chandise. On this farm the mother of the family died in 1910, leaving 
nine of the ten children born to her, six sons and four daughters, to 
mourn their great bereavement. 

Thomas M. Ludden was but two years old when his parents moved 
from Ohio to this state. He grew to manhood in Adair county, attended 
the public schools, and prepared himself for the profession of teaching 
at the Kirksville Normal School. He was then employed in teaching in 
Adair county until 1894, when he moved to Marceline with other lines 
of work in view. After his arrival here, however, he continued teaching 
three years, part of the time in Linn county and part in Chariton. In 
1897 he opened a real estate, insurance and loan office, and this he is 
still in charge of, with a steadily increasing business and a strengthen- 
ing hold on the .confidence, regard and good will of the people. He has 
made a study of his business and all that pertains to it, and has become 
an acknowledged authority on all matters connected with or growing 
out of it, and it has grown in proportion to the mastery of it which he 
has exhibited.' 

Mr. Ludden was married on Thanksgiving Day, 1895, to Miss Anna 
Hardey, a native of McDonough county, Illinois. They have nine 
children: Gervaise J., Amonica, J. B., Thomas M., Jr., Willmia, Wini- 
fred, Earnest, Mary E. and May E. (twins); all living and all still 
members of the parental family circle, and all who are old enough 
attending school, as no one has a better knowledge or a keener appreci- 
ation of the value of education as a preparation for the duties of mature 
life than their parents. 

In the political affairs of his township and county Mr. Ludden has 
taken an earnest interest and a leading part. His political faith is 
pledged and his zeal is devoted to the principles of the Democratic 
party, and for these he works at all times, although not allowing 
partisan considerations at any time to overbear his sense of duty toward 
his community. He served seven years as city clerk of Marceline and 
for a number of years has been a member of the school board and its 
president. In church connection he is a Catholic, and in fraternal rela- 
tions a Knight of Pythias, a AVoodman of the World, a Knight of 
Columbus and a member of the order of Knights and Ladies of Security. 
In business circles he stands high; as a citizen he is wide-awake, enter- 
prising and progressive; socially he is warmly welcomed everywhere 
and an acquisition to any gathering; in the cause of public education he 
is an influential force, as he is in behalf of all good agencies at work 
among the people, and as a man he enjoys the esteem of all who know 



HISTORY OF LIXN COUXTY 435 

him in all parts of Linn county and wherever else he has lived and the 
public has acquired knowledge of his worth. 



HON. ARTHUR L. PRATT 

Holding the record for length of service in the office of probate 
judge in Linn county, and by that fact proving that his services in the 
office are well appreciated by the people of the county, Hon. Arthur L. 
Pratt, of Linneus has one very unusual distinction to his credit. But 
that is not the only fact in his record which is entitled to credit and 
honorable mention. It is also to be said in his favor that for years he 
practiced his profession as a lawyer with great success and public 
approval, that he filled an editorial chair in Linn county for two years 
acceptably, that he rendered the people of the county service that was 
highly satisfactory as circuit clerk for a full term, and that he attracted 
attention in his young manhood as a wide-awake, progressive and skill- 
ful school teacher. 

Mr. Pratt is essentially in all particulars a product of Linn county 
and a representative of its most elevated and useful citizenship. He 
was born in the county on March 4, 1865, grew to manhood on one of its 
valuable and desirable farms, laid the foundation of his education in its 
district schools, and began the battle of life for himself as an instructor 
of its youth in its common schools. He completed his education at 
Avalon College in Livingston county and at Kirksville, Missouri, but the 
work of these institutions were only the development and further train- 
ing of faculties already bred and awakened to activity in Linn county, 
and was therefore nothing more than an application of an extraneous 
influence on material already well prepared in this county for the bene- 
ficial effect of any force, outside or inside the county, that might take 
hold of it. 

Mr. Pratt is the son of Henry and Ibline (Connelly) Pratt, and the 
grandson of Jeremiah Pratt, a prominent citizen of Greene county in 
eastern Tennessee, where the judge's father was born on March 6, 1825. 
He, also, was reared on a farm, and in 1841, when he was but sixteen 
years of age, left his native state and came to Missouri. On his arrival 
in this state he located in Linn county, where he passed the remainder 
of his life, dying on his Linn county farm on June 30, 1891. 

On December 25, 1852, he was united in marriage with Miss Ibline 
Connelly, a native of Kentucky and a daughter of Rice and Ibline 
(Baskett) Connelly. Seven children were born of the union : Dr. James 



436 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

A., who died on December 17, 1908; Mary A., who is the widow of 
Daniel H. Manard, of Kansas City, Missouri ; William H., who is also a 
resident of that city; John F., whose home is in Paul's Valley, Chicka- 
saw county, Oklahoma; Susan E., now the wife of W. P. Thorne, of 
Linneus, this county; Oscar H., a resident of Meadville, Linn county; 
and Arthur L., the interesting subject of this brief memoir. The mother 
of these children died in Linn county, Missouri, on September 7, 1894. 

When he was sixteen years of age Judge Arthur L. Pratt entered 
Avalon College, in Livingston county, this state, as has been noted, and 
he passed two years in that institution. He then pursued a special 
course of preparation for the work of teaching school at Kirksville 
Normal School, and after completing it devoted several years to teach- 
ing in the district schools of the county of his nativity. In the fall of 
1890 he was elected circuit clerk of the county, and during the one term 
he served in this office he studied law with a view to making the practice 
of that profession Ms occupation for the rest of his days. 

The judge was admitted to the bar in 1896 and began his practice 
in Brookfield. But carefully as he had laid his plans, and zealous as he 
was in his efforts to work them out, fate had destined him for other 
duties. His services were required, for a short time at least, in another 
field of labor, and an opening for the use of them in it, was not long in 
coming. In 1898 he purchased the Brookfield Budget, and during the 
next two years he edited and published that paper in a way that brought 
him distinction in the county and gave him a potential voice in its 
public affairs. 

But the work seemed to him to be interfering with his permanent 
designs, and in 1900 he sold the Budget to E. E. Gill and returned to 
his law practice. He had made his mark, however, and the people of the 
county were not oblivious of it. In 1902 he was elected probate judge 
of Linn county, and he has been kept in that office ever since, holding 
it for a longeT period to the present time (1912) than any of his pre- 
decessors ever occupied it. As to the manner in which he has dis- 
charged his duties in this important position, the ability and integrity 
he has displayed in the performance of them, and the satisfaction he 
has given the people of the county during his tenure of it, comment is 
unnecessary. The electors have passed judgment on the subject by 
their repeated re-election of him to the office in a manner that, in force 
and significance, goes far beyond anything the pen of a biographer 
could record. 

Judge Pratt was married on November 24, 1887, to Miss Mary L. 
Davis, a daughter of John H. and Martha (Glasgow) Davis, the former 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 437 

a native of Kentucky and the latter of Pike county, Illinois. Two chil- 
dren have sanctified the domestic shrine and brightened the household : 
Fabian L., a recent graduate from the medical department of Vander- 
bilt University at Nashville, Tennessee, and now a resident of New 
York city, and Don Forrester, who is a resident of this county with 
his home in Linneus. 



ALBANES W. BAKER 

The progress and development of Linn county, and the counties 
that adjoin it on all sides, have brought into real estate operations in 
this part of Missouri many dealers of as many different measures of 
caliber and qualification for the business. Nature's inflexible rule, the 
survival of the fittest, has prevailed with reference to them, as it does 
with reference to everything else in the long run. The men who have 
shown aptitude for the business, whatever their previous calling, have 
succeeded in it and are still among its victorious operators. 

Among those who have been successful in the business Albanes W. 
Baker, the junior member of the firm of Beauchamp & Baker, occupies 
a high rank and is firmly fixed in the confidence and regard of the people. 
He and his partner, Eobert J. Beauchamp, a sketch of whom will be 
found in this work, have shown themselves to be ready and resourceful 
in taking advantage of every opportunity that has been presented to 
them, and also wise and farseeing in providing for the wants of pros- 
pective patrons. They study values and possibilities of improvement, 
keep themselves informed of the trend of the trade, and use all the 
means at their command to be ready for every requirement it may lay 
upon them. 

Mr. Baker is a native of Warrick county, Indiana, and was born on 
a farm on October 25, 1869. His parents, William E. and Rhody J. 
(Hedges) Baker, were also natives of that county. They were reared 
and married there, and there the mother passed the whole of her life, 
dying amid the scenes and associations of her childhood and later life 
on February 7, 1882. Two years afterward the father, who was a 
farmer and dealer in farm implements, accompanied by his son Albanes, 
came to Missouri and took up his residence in Salisbury, Chariton 
county. He is now living retired from active business in Brookfield, 
where he enjoys the respect and good will of the people in a marked 
degree entirely in accordance with his worth. 

He and his wife were the parents of three children, all of whom 
are living: Albanes W., the immediate subject of this review; Ivan, 



438 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

who is a resident of Kansas City, Kansas ; and Arvilla, the wife of C. 
L. Henderson, of Kansas City, Missouri. The paternal grandfather of 
these children, Wilburn Baker, was also born and reared in Warrick 
county, Indiana. He passed the whole of his life in that county, and 
died there at a good old age and highly respected on account of his 
genuine worth and long life of usefulness. He was the father of four 
sons and one daughter, all of whom are still residents of Indiana except 
"William E,, the father of Albanes. 

The family originally lived in South Carolina and descended from 
a Eevolutionary soldier in the army of General Washington and under 
his immediate command, who came to this country in colonial times. 
His son William settled in South Carolina after the war, in which his 
father fought for the freedom and independence of the American 
colonies, although himself probably a native of England. But he 
imbibed the prevailing sentiment of the New World, which was deadly 
opposition to foreign domination, and with the virile independence and 
force of a real man, he put his faith in practice with fruitful results. 

Albanes W. Baker was reared to the age of fifteen in his native 
county and began his education in its public schools. He came to Chari- 
ton county, Missouri, with his father in 1884, and then completed his 
education at the normal school at Chillicothe and the North Missouri 
Institute of Salisbury, Mo. He followed farming under the direction 
and in the service of his father until he became of age, and then taught 
school for sixteen years in Chariton and adjoining counties, also two 
years in Brookfield. Wliile engaged in this inspiring but nerve-racking 
occupation he filled a number of important positions, being principal of 
the schools in Avalon, Hale and Rothville, and making an excellent 
record in each, and now holds a life certificate to teach in Missouri. 

In 1903 he came to Brookfield and took charge of the Hickman 
School, which he conducted until 1905, then resigned to enter into part- 
nership with Mr. Beauchamp in the firm of which both are still mem- 
bers. The six years of their real estate and farm loan operations they 
have been steady and continued in their course of success and expansion 
in business, and they have risen to the first rank in the estimation of 
the people as judicious and discriminating dealers, with full knowledge 
of the business and its needs in this part of the state, and familiarity 
with the best methods of providing for all that it requires in every way. 

On October 27, 1897, Mr. Baker was married to Miss Nellie A. 
Bushnell, a daughter of Harvey and Ruth (Mason) Bushnell, natives of 
Vermont who came to Missouri in 1869. Mr. and Mrs. Baker have one 
child living, their son Francis E. The father served as county school 



HISTOPiY OF LIXN COUNTY 439 

commissioner in 1905, and has also been president of the city council. 
He is a Democrat in politics and zealous in the service of his party. 
Fraternally he is a Freemason of the Knights Templar degree and a 
member of the Order of Odd Fellows. He and his wife are devoted 
members of the First Methodist Episcopal Church and active in all its 
undertakings for the good of the community. They are widely known 
throughout the county and are everywhere regarded as most estimable 
and worthy citizens. 



CHARLES L. SPALDING 

Nearly half a century has passed since Charles L. Spalding, of 
Brookfield first became a resident of Missouri, forty-five years since he 
located in Linn county, and twenty-one since he set up his domestic 
altar in the city of Brookfield. The period has been sufficient in length 
to give even an indifferent lounger along the pleasanter by-paths of 
life's highway an intimate knowledge of the people of the county aiid 
state, and awaken in him some degree of interest in their welfare. But 
Mr. Spalding has been no lounger or indifferent observer. He has been 
an active force of productive energy in the industrial and mercantile 
life of the state, and therefore necessarily a diligent student of the 
aspirations, needs and habits of its people, and the basic motives which 
impel them to exertion. To all their efforts for advancement he has 
given his earnest practical support, and in all their desires and longings 
he has had his full share. 

Mr. Spalding is a native of the great state of Ohio, and was born at 
Ravenna, Portage county, on December 11, 1844. His parents were 
Ebenezer and Frances L. (Day) Spalding, the former born in Conn. 
Windham county, and the latter in Eavenna, Ohio. She died in St. 
Louis, Missouri. They had three sons and two daughters, all living 
but one. 

The father was an attorney and made a good living for his family 
in his profession, furnishing its members with the comforts required 
for their physical wants and affording his offspring good educational 
facilities. He graduated from Yale, class of 1838 and Cambridge law 
school in 1839. Practiced in northern Ohio and in St. Louis one year 
prior to his death, which occurred there August 17, 1866, of cholera. 

His son Charles began his education in the common schools and 
completed it at Union High School in his native place, where he lived 
until October, 1865. At the age of eighteen he secured from the Chicago 
& Pittsburg Railroad Company large contracts for supplies of timber, 



440 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

which he carried out with great profit to himself. When he attained his 
majority he moved to St. Lonis, in this state, where he became warmly 
interested in the steamer Rosa Lee, and accepted a position as her clerk. 
The steamer was lost in the great ice gorge which occurred at the St. 
Louis levee on the Mississippi in the winter of 1865-6. 

After this disaster Mr. Spalding was employed for a short time by 
Alkire & Co., wholesale grocers of St. Louis, and was recommended by 
them for the post of confidential clerk and bookkeeper to W. H. Elliott, 
of St. Catharine, in this county. He accompanied Mr. Elliott to St. 
Catharine, arriving on April 6, 1866, and at once took charge of the 
store and mill accounts of his new employer. He remained with Mr. 
Elliott in an intimate and confidential relation until 1875, when he pur- 
chased the stock and buildings of the business, and from that time until 
1890 conducted its affairs on his own account. His trade expanded 
rapidly through his great enterprise and progressiveness, until, in 1881, 
it amounted to fifty thousand dollars for the year. After that it con- 
tinued to increase from year to year with a steady progress, and when 
he sold it in 1890 was one of the most extensive in northern Missouri in 
the line of its operations. During all this period Mr. Spalding was also 
one of the largest buyers and shippers of wool in this part of the state, 
and one of the best known men in the country in that field of traffic. 

In 1890 he sold his interests in St. Catharine and moved to Brook- 
field, where he had helped to organize the Wheeler Savings Bank and 
was also heavily interested in real estate. In addition to his interests 
in Brookfield at that time, and what he has since acquired, he is a stock- 
holder in the Linn County Bank, of which he is director. He is con- 
nected also with many enterprises and holdings of value outside of 
this state, and although now at an age when many men retire from 
active pursuits, still gives his close personal attention to all his pos- 
sessions and business affairs. 

In his political faith Mr. Spalding is a firm believer in the principles 
of the Democratic party and always gives it and its candidates hearty 
and loyal support. But he has never sought or wished for public office 
for himself. He was married on December 26, 1870, to Miss Adella 
Crandall, a native of Concord, Erie county. New York. They have had 
four children, their son Elliott, their daughters Irene and Lena, and 
their other son Seymour. Elliott is a lawyer in St. Joseph, Missouri, 
and Lena lives in Billings, Montana. Irene and Seymour have died. 

Mr. Spalding belongs to the Masonic order, and holds his member- 
ship in Brookfield Lodge No. 86 at Brookfield. He has served two terms 
as the worshipful master of that lodge, and taken an active part in the 



HISTOIJY OF LINN COUNTY 441 

work of the fraternity in many other ways. He is prominent in the 
social life of the city and county, has a commanding influence in their 
business circles, is a potential factor in connection with their public 
aifairs, and is universally regarded as one of their best and most 
representative citizens. Mrs. Spalding is one of the gifted and culti- 
vated ladies of the country. Her graceful and resourceful pen has 
delighted thousands of readers of her magazine articles and other pro- 
ductions in literature, and given her a high rank among the occasional 
writers of our land. 



ALBERT C. CLARKE 

(Deceased) 

Although nearly fifteen years have passed since the death of this 
leading and most highly esteemed citizen of Brookfield, his memory is 
still green in the minds of the people, who cherished him highly while 
he lived and revere his name since his death for his great enterprise in 
helping to build up the city and his genuine worth as a man and a citi- 
zen. His work for the community was substantial and enduring, and 
is today the best monument to his pr ogres siveness and public spirit, 
and will be a benefaction to many succeeding generations of the people 
of the city yet to come. 

Mr. Clarke was a native of the state of New York, and was born at 
Henderson, Jefferson county, in that state, on Januarj^ 5, 1817. He 
was reared as a farmer, working under the direction of his father until 
he reached the age of fourteen. His father then hired him out as a 
farm hand to one of the neighbors and took and used his wages until 
he attained his majority. Under the circumstances he had almost no 
opportunities for attending school, being allowed to go only during the 
winter months, and even then but for a few years and when he could 
be spared from the work he was hired to do, and was kept at whenever 
his employer desired. 

On coming of age he began life for himself as a farmer on rent(?kl 
land, but two years later bought forty acres of unimproved and 
unbroken ground near Sackett's Harbor in his native state. He paid 
for this land by cutting wood on it, hauling it to the harbor and selling 
it at $1.25 a cord. He improved it and lived on it until 1844, when he 
turned his attention to dairying at Houndsfield, New York. The next 
year he bought 110 acres of partially improved land, the purchase price 
being $900 in money and his other forty acres, which were valued at 



443 HISTORY OF LIXX COU.NTY 

$600. The debt was discharged in two years, and from that time Mr. 
Clarke's prosperity was assured and his progress toward independence 
and wealth was rapid. By making additional purchases of land from 
time to time he became possessed of 1,000 acres in New York, and 
ranked among the leading farmers of the state. 

He lived on his home farm of 110 acres until 1867, then sold it for 
$5,600 in cash. Two years later he moved to Missouri and located at 
Brooktield. He found here a great demand for ready money and, 
seizing the opportunity for furthering his fortunes as well as for being 
of service to the community, as he always did, he became a money lender 
and as such carried on an extensive business. He also kept a hotel for 
a number of years, making it the most popular and successful hostelry 
in the city. 

In the meantime he purchased 100 acres of land adjoining the town 
and plotted into city lots about eighty acres of the tract. On these lots 
he built 100 houses, many of which he sold, but was still in possession 
of thirty-one of them at the time of his death. The property he added 
to the city limits, which is known as Clarke 's Addition, was laid out and 
improved for residences, and Mr. Clarke planted rows of shade trees 
along its prospective streets, and in other ways made it very attractive. 

He also realized soon after his arrival in the town the need of a bet- 
ter hotel than any in it, and in 1871 and 1872 built the Clarke block, an 
imposing structure three stories high and built of brick in a good style 
of architecture, at a cost, including its furnishings, of about $35,000. 
The first floor is devoted to business purposes and contains three rooms 
admirably adapted to their uses. The hotel is located in the second and 
third stories, was modern in every respect when erected and highly com- 
mended for the convenience of its arrangement and the completeness of 
its appointments. It was, in its prime, one of the leading ornaments of 
the city and very creditable to its builder 's enterprise, public spirit and 
foresight. 

Soon after completing this business house and hotel Mr. Clarke, 
bought a valuable farm of 1,000 acres in Locust Creek township five and 
a half miles north of Brookfield, and also his grape farm, containing six 
acres of vineyard, and 320 acres of land in all, located in the vicinity of 
the city. From then to the end of his life, which came on January 26, 
1896, he was extensively engaged in farming in the most approved mod- 
ern style and with great success, his farm being a model in this part of 
the country. 

On January 1, 1838, he united in marriage with Miss Fannie Hallo- 
way, a native of Adams, Jefferson county, New York. They had five 



HISTORY OF LIXN COUNTY 443 

children, all daughters and all now deceased but one, Climena, now the 
mfe of E. J. Clark, of Linn county. Her mother died in 1885, and on 
January 5, 1887, the father married a second time, his choice on this 
occasion being Mrs. Mary Poole, the widow of J. H. Poole. Her maiden 
name was Mary Collins, and she was born in New York, a daughter of 
Luke and Phoebe (Bennett) Collins, who died in that state. Mrs. Clarke 
came to Missouri in 1869 and is still living in this county. She had one 
child, a daughter, by her first marriage, Minnie (she was Mrs. F. H. 
West at the time of her death), and has been dead for several years. 

Although a man of prominence and influence, Mr. Clarke had no 
political ambition and never sought or desired a political office either by 
appointment or election. He was content and found his greatest satis- 
faction in performing his duty to his community as a private citizen, 
and was constant and energetic in attention to it. The general welfare 
of the people around him was his chief concern, and the expansion and 
improvement of the city and county of his home his leading desire. He 
deserved well of the public, and all classes esteemed him according to 
his merit. 



JOSEPH W. MOORE 

Joseph W. Moore, cashier and manager of the Moore Bank and 
city treasurer of Brookfield, is one of Linn county's most progressive, 
enterprising and representative citizens. He has a particularly deep 
interest in the welfare of the county from the fact that he was born 
in it, educated in its schools and has long been an active participant 
in its industrial and commercial activities, having, in fact, passed the 
whole of his life to this time (1912) within its borders and among its 
people. 

Mr. Moore's life began on his father's farm near Linneus on July 
5, 1861. He is a son of James A. and Sarah F. (True) Moore, a sketch 
of whom will be found elsewhere in this volume. The son grew to 
manhood and attended the public schools, remaining at the parental 
fireside and taking his place in the working forces of the farm from 
his boyhood, just as other farmers' sons in the locality have done. 
After leaving school he engaged in farming until he reached the age 
of twenty-five, then moved to Brookfield and became a member of the 
firm of Powers & Moore, druggists. 

He was connected with this firm and the drug trade eighteen 
years. In July, 1904, he and his father founded the Moore Bank in 
Brookfield, of which he was made cashier and manager at the start, 



444 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

and this position in tlie institution he has occupied ever since. He is 
also city treasurer of Brookfield, and is filling the office very much to 
his own credit and the satisfaction of the people. In this position he 
looks after the interests of the city and its inhabitants with sleepless 
vigilance, using his official power wisely and always for their benefit. 

In politics Mr. Moore is an uncompromising Democrat in national 
affairs, and in all national campaigns he is energetic and effective in 
the service of his party. In local elections, while still adhering to his 
party under all favorable circumstances, he would never let partisan 
considerations outweigh the public good in his regard, and always has 
that first in mind. His religious connection is with the Methodist 
Episcopal church. 

On December 25, 1887, he was married to Miss Louie E. Grain, a 
native of Illinois and daughter of Joseph J. and Lydia (Moore) Grain. 
The father is dead and the mother resides in Brookfield. Three children 
have been born in the Moore household, in which all of them still abide. 
They are: Ruth L., Helen E. and Harold J. The family stands well in 
the community, and all of its members are held in the highest esteem. 
They are all active in good work for the mental, moral and social 
advancement of their city and county, and are everywhere taken as 
good representatives of the manhood and womanhood of Linn county 
in its best and most useful development and productiveness. They are 
unostentatious but sterling, and faithful to daily duty in every relation 
of life. 



THOMAS M. BRESNEHEN 

While a great deal may be justly claimed for the inspiring scenes 
and memorials of historic places, and their impulsions to heroic deeds 
in their influence on human lives, and no one can question the force of 
heredity on human character, all history teaches that earth has no 
choice spots for the birth of her strong men, and no one's characteris- 
tics are inherited whollj^ from his ancestors. Often in this country 
men of heroic mould have been born and bred on the very confines of 
civilization, and even the almost untrodden depths of the wilderness 
have brought forth high types of majestic manhood. It is true, also, 
that almost every man, although he must show, in the very nature of 
the case, traits of mind and character similar to those of his progeni- 
tors, exhibits others wholly new in his family or individual in his case. 

Thomas M. Bresnehen of Brookfield, who is accounted one of the 
strongest and most capable lawyers in northeastern Missouri, furnishes 







VKV<i^ 




HISTOEY OF LINX COUNTY 445 

a suggestive example of these facts. He was born and reared in a wild, 
undeveloped section of the country, and even though he inherited force 
of character, versatility of mind and adaptability to circumstances 
from his father he has developed and used these gifts in a way which 
proves that he came into the world possessed of other faculties that 
have so blended with these as to make him a very different man. 

Mr. Bresnehen may not improperly be called a product of Brook- 
field, although he was born on April 16, 1860, within the present limits 
of the city, it is true, but before there was even a straggling hamlet 
on its site. Here, however, he began his education and grew to man- 
hood, surpassing the town in the rapidity of his development. For the 
latter he has since atoned by helping to promote its growth and 
improvement by every means at his command and exerted his influence 
to get others to do the same. No enterprise for the good of his com- 
munity has ever gone without his aid since he reached man's estate, and 
his aid has always been freely given and intelligently applied. 

He is a son of Thomas and Honora (Daily) Bresnehen, natives of 
County Kerry, Ireland, where the father was reared to maturity, but 
he married his wife in the United States, whither he came in 1847. He 
landed at New York city and at once began sub-contracting on railroad 
work through New Y'ork, Indiana and Illinois. Continuing his prog- 
ress westward, he arrived in Missouri in 1857, and soon afterward 
secured a contract in grading work on the Hannibal & St. Joseph Rail- 
road west of Brookfield. 

On the completion of the road he bought a farm near what is now 
the city of Brookfield, and on this farm he lived until his death in 1885. 
Of their seven children four are living, three sons and one daughter, 
Thomas and his sister being the only ones resident in Linn county. In 
politics the father was a loyal member of the Democratic party during 
the whole of his citizenship in this country, but he never sought or cared 
for public office. He and the mother were zealous and consistent mem- 
bers of the Catholic church. 

Their son Thomas completed in the State University the scholastic 
training he began in the primitive country school near his home. He 
was graduated from the university in 1882, and immediately began the 
study of law under the direction of Judge Brownlee. So apt and pro- 
gressive was he in mastering the principles of his profession that he 
was admitted to practice it in 1883, after but one year's study. From 
then until now (1912) he has been an active general practitioner of the 
law in this community, with a steadily expanding practice and rising 
reputation as an attorney and counselor. Although giving attention 



446 HISTORY OF LINX COUNTY 

to all departments of his profession, lie has made something of a spe- 
cialty of criminal law, and in that fruitful field of practice has risen to 
eminence in this part of the state. 

Mr. Bresnehen was first associated in the practice with J. M. John- 
son for a time, and then with the late H. K. West until his death in 1907. 
Since that event he has been in partnership with Henry J. West, a 
brother of H. K., under the firm name of Bresnehen & West. He was 
elected prosecuting attorney for the county in 1890 and held the office 
continuously until 1898. While serving the people in that capacity he 
was as capable, zealous and resolute in their behalf as he has ever 
since been in the service of a client charged with any wrong against 
their peace, dignity and government, being always faithful in the per- 
formance of his duty. 

In political faith and allegiance Mr. Bresnehen is a Democrat of 
firm belief in the principles of his party and great energy and effective- 
ness in its service. He has been for some years a member of its state 
central committee, and as such has proven himself a vigorous and skill- 
ful leader and a wise and capable organizer. He is a member of the 
Catholic church. 

On November 18, 1886, Mr. Bresnehen solemnized his marriage 
with Miss Isabel Hamsom, a daughter of Orrin and Elizabeth (Tenny) 
Hamsom, who came from Massachusetts to Missouri in 1868. One 
child has blessed the union and brightened the household, a daughter 
named Vivian H., who is a graduate of the State University and has 
received from that institution the degree of Master of Arts. She is a 
young lady of fine mental endowment and culture, and one of the orna- 
ments to the social life of the county. 



LINN COUNTY BANK 

This fine, enterprising and progressive financial institution, which 
is the oldest and largest in Brookfield, and the second in age in Linn 
county, has had a striking, and in some respects a remarkable history. 
It is a very suggestive fiscal entity, too, for its record parallels that of 
the region in which it is located, and its progress has exactly kept pace 
with that of Brookfield and the surrounding country, in the develop- 
Inent and improvement of which it has been a potent and highly 
serviceable factor. 

The bank was founded in 1876 by Dr. Hamilton De Graw, a sketch 
of whom will be found elsewhere in this work, and was the outgrowth 



HISTORY OF LIXX COUNTY 447 

of the banking house of H. De Graw & Co., which had been doing a 
flourishing business in the expanding and aspiring city for some years. 
In 1882 it was made a state bank with a capital stock of $10,000. This 
was soon increased to $20,000, then, in 1893, to $30,000, afterward to 
$50,000 and finally to $100,000, which it is at this time (1912). This 
rapid development speaks for itself. The territory tributary to the 
business of the bank was improving rapidly, and the bank had to keep 
pace with it and hold itself in readiness to meet the constantly increas- 
ing demands on its resources. Here is the history of Brookfield and 
Linn county for the last thirty years condensed in a few figures, which, 
however, speak volumes in what they embody. 

The first officers of the bank were: W. H. Brownlee, president, 
and W. H. De Graw, cashier. Mr. Brownlee served as president until 
1893. In that year H. De Graw was elected in his place. Resigning in 
May, 1895, he was again elected president in 1902 and served until 
1906. In that year E. M. Lomax became president, and he has served 
the bank and the community in that capacity ever since. The progress 
of the institution under his management has been steady, wholesome 
and continuous. The volume of its business has grown to great pro- 
portions, its popularity has been widely extended and deeply inten- 
sified, and its rank in the business world has reached the highest plane 
among the banks of the state. 

W. H. De Graw, the first cashier, who had also been president for 
some years, from 1895 until his death in 1901. But prior to that time, 
in 1895, he had resigned as cashier, and when he did George W. 
Stephens succeeded him. In 1904 the present cashier, C. H. Jones, was 
elected to the office, and since then he has been the inspiration and 
directing power of the institution. He was well prepared for his duties 
by obtaining a good academic education and special training in several 
commer.cial colleges. 

George W. Martin has occupied the office of vice president of the 
bank for many years. He was one of its founders, and from the begin- 
ning of its career has been connected with it in a leading way. The 
present officers in full are: E. M. Lomax, president; George W. Martin, 
vice president; C. H. Jones, cashier, and W. W. Martin, assistant 
cashier. The directors, in addition to these gentlemen are: H. De 
Graw, C. L. Spalding, R. W. Davis, R. S. Smith and R. X. De Graw. 
They all stand well in business circles and are accounted among the 
best citizens of Linn county. 

The resources of this bank, as given in its published statement 
at the close of business on December 5, 1911, were: Loans and dis- 



448 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

counts, $426,302.07; overdrafts, $26.21; bonds, $24,000; and cash and 
exchange, $89,250.71; making a total of $539,578.99. Its liabilities at 
the same time were: Capital, $100,000; surplus and undivided profits, 
earned, $70,834.84; individual deposits, $322,481.11, and deposits from 
other banks, $46,263.04. The bank is Avell managed, uniting in its 
policy enlightened progress with judicious conservatism, and does a 
general business embracing all approved features of modern banking. 
The people believe in it fully because it has fully demonstrated its 
strength and reliability. 



OLIVER CRAMER 



Connected with the mercantile activities of Brookfield for a period 
of thirty- six years, and during that time devoting all his time and 
energy to business, except what has been required for the faithful per- 
formance of the duties of citizenship, Oliver Cramer, one of the leading 
dry goods merchants of the city and this portion of the state, has well 
earned the high rank he holds in the regard and good will of the people 
as a business man and the general esteem in which he stands as a man 
and citizen. For, in his long residence in the city he has shown that he 
is sterling, upright and straightforward, and cordially and helpfully 
interested in the enduring welfare and progress of the community. 

Mr. Cramer is a native of Illinois, and was born in Jasper county 
of that state on March 15, 1862. He is a son of Isaiah and Margaret 
(Custis) Cramer, the former born in Ohio and the latter in Kentucky. 
The father was a farmer and school teacher; he died in 1866. The 
mother lived until 1894. They had three sons and one daughter, and 
labored diligently to rear their family to the best advantage. Oliver is 
the only one of their offspring who lives in Linn county, and his record 
is highly creditable to the rearing they gave him. 

He grew to the age of thirteen in Livingston county, Missouri, then 
came to Brookfield and began to earn his own living as a clerk in the 
store of L. T. Ross. Later he became a partner of Mr. Ross and the 
active manager of the business of the firm. But in the meantime he 
was employed by the house of H. Emanuel & Co. for some years. In 
every position and business connection he showed fine capacity, sedu- 
lous attention to duty and a warm interest in the welfare of his em- 
ployer, and these manifestations have been of advantage to him in 
many ways. They were elements in promoting his progress, and they 
have been potential in establishing him in the confidence and esteem 
of the people ever since. 



HISTOEY OF LIXX COUXTY 449 

In 1884 lie opened a dry goods emporium of his own, and since then 
he has conducted one of the leading marts in his line of trade in the 
city, and managed it with primary reference to the wants of the com- 
munity. In all his dealings he has been strictly square and in the 
operation of his business he has given Brookfield and Linn county a 
fine example of superior business enterprise, up-to-date methods and 
a sweep of vision that is comprehensive enough to take in both present 
needs and future requirements and provide for all in the most 
satisfactory manner. 

Mr. Cramer is a stockholder in the Brownlee Bank, and has been 
at all times active in the service of the city and county of his home. 
He gave intensified vitality and force to one of the great public insti- 
tutions of the city as a member of the school board, on which he served 
six years, and in connection with every other public interest he has 
been zealous, energetic and effective in his advocacy and support of 
the best that is known in designs and the methods of working them out. 

On February 22, 1883, he was united in marriage with Miss Alice 
McKinzie, a daughter of John and Catherine McKinzie. Her father 
died in 1863, while serving in the Union army, and the mother makes 
her home with our subject. Four children, all living, have been 
born of the union: Edward E., who resides in the state of 
Montana; Loring T., also a citizen of that great and promising state; 
and Rosetta and Walter E., who are still living at home with their 
parents, and adding life and light to the parental family circle. 

The father is a Freemason of the Knights Templar degree, and he 
and all the members of his family are members of the Presbyterian 
church. In the congregation to which he belongs he has been one of 
the trustees for many years, and one of its most faithful workers from 
the beginning of his membership in it, and his servi,ces have been 
highly valued by the other members. 

Mr. Cramer is now one of the oldest merchants in Brookfield. He 
began his mercantile career in the city when it and the surrounding 
country were just beginning to show renewed vitality after the devasta- 
tion and stagnation of business incident to the Civil War, and he has 
been a potent factor in all their subsequent progress and development. 
Whatever Brookfield and Linn county are today they owe in consider- 
able measure to his enterprise, which has harmoniously coalesced with 
that of others for the common good and general advancement of the 
region. The people of the city and county know this, and they appre- 
ciate him and his services accordingly. 



450 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

WILLIAM M. BUNCH 

Popular as a man and citizen, standing high in business circles and 
in the first rank of his profession as a pharmacist, William M. Bunch, 
one of the leading druggists of Brookfield, has commended himself 
to the esteem and good will of the people of the city and county of his 
home by his character, usefulness and extensive attainments, and also 
by his mastery of his art and conscientious care and skill in the practice 
of it. The accuracy and excellence of his prescription work is well 
known throughout the city and a large extent of the surrounding 
country, and has given him a very enviable reputation among the 
13eople. 

Mr. Bunch is a native of Macon county, Missouri, and was born 
near Atlanta on October 17, 1867. He is a son of David and Binda 
(Cook) Bunch, both natives of Missouri and for a number of years 
residents of this county. The father is a farmer living north of Brook- 
field, where he cultivates a fine farm with skill and the intelligent 
application of modern methods of agriculture. The family located in 
Linn county in 1874, and have had their home in it from that time to 
the present, and been valued elements of its industrial and social life, 
and appreciated aids in all its moral and intellectual agencies. 

There are eight children belonging to the household, one son and 
seven daughters, and six of the eight live in this county. Their 
j)aternal grandfather, James Bunch, was born and reared in Kentucky. 
He moved to Missouri and located in Macon county in about 1840, and 
some time afterward changed his residence to Linn county, where he 
died at a good old age. His forefathers were pioneers in Kentucky, 
and he became a resident of Missouri while much of the state was still 
undeveloped and but sparsely settled. 

William M. Bunch reached his ;maturity in this county and 
obtained his education in its schools. He w^as engaged in farming until 
1891, then came to Brookfield to clerk in the drug store of C. M. Easton 
and later performed the same service in that of Charles Green. While 
acting as clerk in these stores he studied the science of pharmacy and 
acquired a thorough knowledge of it with a view to going into the 
l)usiness on his own account, and this he did as soon as he was prepared 
for the undertaking. 

He opened a store of his own in 1906, and since that time he has 
been closely attentive to its requirements and built up a considerable 
trade for it. He is careful in the selection and preservation of his 
supplies, buying only the best and purest drugs, uses great diligence 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 451 

in keeping them from deterioration, and applies the widest knowledge 
and utmost skill in compounding them in prescription work. By these 
means he holds and enlarges his patronage in the community and main- 
tains his rank in the business and his elevated place in the confidence 
and regard of the people. 

In matters outside of his business also he deserves and enjoys the 
approval and esteem of the public. He is a man of public spirit and 
enterprise in connection with all projects designed to push forward 
the progress -and work out the development and improvement of his 
city and county, and his services in this respect have given him high 
standing as a man and citizen. There are many forceful factors in 
harness to make Brookfield and Linn county all that Nature designed 
they should be and the energy of man can make them, and he is one 
of the foremost. 

Mr. Bunch was married in Brookfield on March 30, 1893, to Miss 
Cora E. Theobald, a daughter of Lewis and Sarah (Ditto) Theobald, 
prominent residents of Brookfield for many years. Two children have 
been born of the union and brightened the home circle, of which they 
are still members, Gladys I. and Sadie. They are ornaments to the 
social life of the city and popular wherever they are known, following 
modestly and gracefully in the footsteps of their parents in this 
respect. 

The father has never taken an active part in partisan politics, but 
he has always been attentive to the claims of good citizenship and met all 
their requirements faithfully and intelligently. He has, however, shown 
a cordial interest in the fraternal life of the community as a member 
of the Woodmen of the World and the Modern Woodmen of America, 
and in religious affairs as a devoted and zealous member of the Baptist 
church, to which his wife and daughters also belong, and in which 
they are working members. 



CHARLES GREEN 

(Deceased) 

The late Charles Green, one of the pioneer druggists of Brookfield, 
whose death on August 20, 1910, cast a deep shadow of grief and gloom 
over the whole community, was a fine specimen of the mastery given a 
man for his business by long study and thorough training. He began 
the study of pharmacy when he was a boy and continued it to the end 



452 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

of his life. It had ever opening vistas for him and he always found 
something in the science to learn for his own improvement and the 
advantage of his patrons, and he gave them the benefit of all his 
acquisitions. 

Mr. Green was born in London, England, on March 20, 1847. His 
father died while the son was in his childhood, and the mother married 
a second husband. The son was apprenticed to a London apothecary in 
his boyhood, and worked for his emploj^er and tutor seven years as an 
apprentice. By the end of that period he was thoroughly trained in the 
business and he was then licensed as a pharmacist, with full privilege 
to practice under the English law. He did not, however, remain long in 
his native country after receiving his license. The United States seemed 
to beckon him with a welcoming hand and a voice full of promise of 
enlarged opportunity. 

Accordingly in 1867 he came to this country and located for a time 
at Henderson, Kentucky, intending to make his home there. But at the 
end of one year he moved to St. Louis, where he remained a year and a 
half. In 1870 he came to Brookfield, and here he passed the rest of his 
life. For a short time after his arrival in Brookfield he worked for 
W. T. Snow. But working for another man was not in accordance with 
his spirit or desires, and he therefore soon opened a drug store of his 
own, and this he conducted continuously until his death. 

The people soon learned that he was mor'^ than ordinarily capable 
and careful in his work, and his trade grew to large proportions. His 
reputation spread throughout this county and those which adjoin it on 
all sides, and he became an authority on all intricate questions connected 
with his calling. So accurate was he in his knowledge and so careful in 
his investigations that his judgment was universally accepted as the 
last word in any case of uncertainty or controversy. 

On August 21, 1882, Mr. Green was married to Miss Laura Smith, 
a daughter of Hiram and Mary (Curry) Smith, natives of Franklin 
county, New Y'ork. Four children were born of the union, two of whom 
died in infancy. The other two are living and are a daughter named 
Beatrice and a son named Charles 0. The latter is now conducting the 
business founded by his father and keeping the reputation of the store 
up to the high standard it has so long maintained. His mother died in 
1893, and on December 25, 1895, the father married a second wife, his 
choice on this occasion being Miss Sarah Smith, a sister of his first wife. 
They had one child, their son Arthur. The second Mrs. Green died 
in 1901. 

In his political faith and allegiance Mr. Green was a Republican, 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 453 

but lie was never an active partisan and never sought or desired a pub- 
lic office, either by election or appointment. His business, which at one^ 
time included a wholesale drug trade and extensive dealings in ice, coal 
and real estate, met all his desires in the way of occupation, and he gave 
his whole attention to it, except what was required for the duties of citi- 
zenship, which he never neglected. He found satisfaction for his 
religious aspirations in the Episcopal church, of which he was a regular 
attendant from his boyhood. He was a most estimable man and univer- 
sally esteemed as such. 



CHARLES W. CLEMENTS 

This prominent and successful business man of Brookfield, head of 
the milling firm of Clements Milling Co. and influential citizen of Linn 
county, is a son of the late Richard W. Clements, a sketch of whose life 
will be found in this volume. He was born in the state of Delaware, city 
of Wilmington, on August 29, 1868, and in his social life and business 
career in this county has exhibited all the admirable traits of character 
and graces of manner which distinguish the people of his native state, 
wherever they are found and whatever they are engaged in, 

Mr. Clements remained in his native state until he reached the age 
of nine years and began his scholastic training there. He came to 
Brookfield with his parents in 1877, and finished his education here. 
After leaving school he farmed for a time, then engaged in railroad 
work for a number of years. Eleven years ago, in association with his 
brother Carroll L. Clements, he started the milling business which now 
occupies him and in which he has been continuously engaged ever since 
he began it. In the management of his enterprise he has shown fine 
business capacity, highly commendable energy and a full knowledge of 
trade conditions and requirements. These qualifications have enabled 
him to make his plant profitable and win for it a high rank in the esti- 
mation of the business world and the general public, and have also given 
him high standing in business circles. 

Mr. Clements has given his business close and exhaustive attention, 
but he has not allowed it to absorb the whole of his time and energy. 
He has been assiduous in the performance of the duties of good citizen- 
ship, and particularly energetic and serviceable in his aid of every com- 
mendable project for the progress and improvement of the county and 
city in which he lives, and in which he feels as strong and genuine an 
interest as he could if he had been born within their confines. 



454 HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 

He was married on February 16, 1891, to Miss Lena Perry, a daugh- 
ter of John and Susan (Wadsworth) Perry, of the state of Oregon. 
Nine children have been born of the union, two of whom, Charles and 
Max, have died. Those who are living are Milton W., Fay S., Kichard 
W., Keith, Mary 0., Byron H. W. and Adelbert E., all of whom are still 
living at home with their parents. The father is a stockholder in the 
Western Hinge Manufacturing Company, and interested in other busi- 
ness enterprises of value to the community. In politics he is a Demo- 
crat, and in fraternal relations a member of the Order of Odd Fellows, 
the Order of Elks and the Woodmen of the World, and is serviceable to 
them all in his membership. 

Carroll L. Clements, a younger brother and the business partner of 
Charles W., was born in the state of Maryland on February 13, 1871, 
and lived in that state until he was six years old, when he was brought 
to this county by his parents. He grew to manhood in Brookfield and 
obtained his education in its schools. When the time came for starting 
the milling business in which he and his brother are engaged, he was 
ready for his part of the undertaking, and he has been connected with 
it as a member of the firm throughout its history. In the management 
of the business he has been a valuable aid to his brother, and its con- 
tinued prosperity and steady expansion are due to their joint efforts, 
which have been conducted in perfect harmony, and greatly to their 
mutual advantage, as well as to that of the city of Brookfield and the 
county of Linn. 

Like his brother Charles, Mr. Clements is full of public spirit and 
gives it expression in service to the people of the county in ardently 
supporting whatever is undertaken for their substantial welfare and 
greater comfort and convenience. The genius of progress and improve- 
ment has no more intelligent, energetic or judicious assistant in the 
community and none whose efforts are more generally appreciated. He 
is discriminating in his work in this respect, and his judgment always 
has weight. 

Mr. Clements was married on February 16, 1891, to Miss Mary A. 
Miles, a daughter of Levi and Mary B. (Hamilton) Miles, of Brookfield. 
The four children who have been born in this Clements household are 
all living and still under the parental roof-tree. They are Raymond L., 
Easter D., Vernon E. and Muriel A. The father is a member of the 
Order of Woodmen of the World, and takes a cordial interest in the 
camp in the fraternity to which he belongs, as he does in everything 
with which he is connected. Both he and his brother are accredited to 
the first rank in their community as men, as citizens and as forceful 



HISTORY OF LIXX COUNTY 455 

business factors, and tliey are fully deserving of the regard and good 
will so freely and universally bestowed upon them throughout the 
county of their home. 



DR. CHARLES E. JENKINS 

Born and reared to the age of eight years in Illinois, then beginning 
his education and attaining his manhood in Iowa, obtaining special 
training for the profession of teaching at the Lincoln Normal Univer- 
sity in the capital of Nebraska, and practicing that profession in the 
two states last named, Dr. Charles E. Jenkins, of Brookfield, had an 
extensive and varied acquaintance with men in different localities before 
he became a resident of Missouri. After his arrival in this state he soon 
showed that he was well qualified for the new profession he had entered, 
and his reputation in it has grown steadily as his practice has expanded 
ever since. 

Dr. Jenkins was born in Marshall county, Illinois, on March 6, 1870, 
and is one of the eight children, seven sons and one daughter, of Jacob 
W. and Susie (McLaughlin) Jenkins, the former a native of Pennsyl- 
vania and the latter of Illinois. The paternal grandfather and pro- 
genitor of the family in this country, was Moses Jenkins, who was born 
and reared in Ireland and on his arrival in this country located near 
Philadelphia. Later he moved to Illinois, where his life ended after 
long years of uprightness in living and usefulness in the service of the 
people among whom he labored. He was a farmer, as was his son 
Jacob, the doctor's father. Of the eight children born in the family of 
the latter five are living, the doctor being the only one who resides in 
this state. 

When Doctor Jenkins was eight years old the family moved to Iowa. 
His father is still living, having his residence in Arkansas City, Arkan- 
sas. In his new home the doctor grew to manhood and began his edu- 
cation in the public schools. After completing their course of instruction 
he passed two years at the Lincoln (Nebraska) Normal University, from 
which he Avas graduated in 1894. He then taught school in Iowa four 
years and afterward was assistant professor of mathematics and physi- 
cal culture in the Lincoln Normal University, from which he received 
his first degree. 

In 1896 he began the study of medicine in the College of Physicians 
and Surgeons in Chicago, which he attended two years. By the end of 
that period the Spanish- American War was in progress, and the doctor 
promptly turned away from all academic and professional pursuits in 



456 HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 

liis ardent desire to aid in vindicating the honor of our country and the 
claims of humanity on which the war was hased. He enlisted in Com- 
pany B, Fifty-fii'st Iowa Volunteer Infantry, and was made color ser- 
geant of his regiment before he was long in the service. The regiment 
was sent to Manila, and there the doctor was in the midst of hostilities 
for many months. He took part in fifteen engagements, and escaped 
unhurt, but had one close call, a bullet passing through his hat. He was 
discharged from the army in 1899. 

After the close of his military service he returned to his home and 
resumed his medical studies, for this purpose matriculating at Rush 
Medical College in Chicago. He was graduated from that institution 
with the degree of M. D. in 1900. Including two years of study in theory 
and practice at the Cook County (Illinois) hospital. He began his prac- 
tice in Iowa and has pursued it in several other states, being now a 
registered physician and surgeon in Iowa, Illinois, Colorado and Mis- 
souri. From 1903 to 1908 he was connected with the Burlington Rail- 
road Relief Service, being sent to Brookfield, this county, in the year 
first named as medical examiner for the organization. He resigned this 
position in 1908, and since then has been engaged in an active and grow- 
ing general practice. 

Dr. Jenkins is zealous and energetic in keeping up with the prog- 
ress of his profession. He pursued a special course of instruction and 
study in the Post Graduate School in New York city in 1911, and he has 
long been connected actively with the Linn County, the Missouri State 
and the Grand River Medical societies. He takes a prominent part in 
the proceedings of these organizations, securing what benefit he can 
from them himself, and contributing to the benefit of the other members 
and the interest and value of their meetings by thoughtful theses on 
professional topics and profitable participation in the discussions which 
always form the most interesting and helpful exercises during the 
sessions. 

In June, 1903, Dr. Jenkins was united in marriage with Miss 
Hattie M. Long, of Iowa. He is a member of the Presbyterian 
church and one of the trustees of the congregation to which he 
belongs. In the public affairs of the county and state he takes an earn- 
est interest and a serviceable part, doing whatever he can to aid in 
promoting the welfare of the people in all their moral, mental, social 
and civic relations. In politics he trains with the Republican party, 
but he is not an active partisan and has no desire for a political office 
of any kind. He is wedded to his profession, and that gives him enough 
to do to keep him busy and sufficient in the way of distinction to satisfy 



HISTOBY OF LINN COUNTY 457 

liis ambition. The people of Linn county regard him as one of their 
most npright, progressive and useful citizens, and all classes of them 
esteem him according to this estimate. 



DR. FRED PEERY 

The science and art of dentistry — for the proper mastery and 
practice of what is known by the name of dentistry includes both 
science and art — must be recognized as comprehending one of the most 
progressive departments of human industry, especially in its practical 
work and the appliances and methods appertaining to it. At best its 
unwelcome but necessary operations have terror in the contemplation 
and real suffering of the most acute kind in the experience of them, 
and its practitioners are" entitled to the highest commendation for 
the progress they have made, by exhaustive study and practical skill, 
in diminishing the terror and alleviating the suffering incident to them. 

Dr. Fred Peery^ of Brookfield, has won an enviable reputation 
for his enterprise and zeal in keeping up with the most advanced 
thought in the profession in mitigating pain, and the application of its 
latest discoveries in his work. He is also held in high regard as a 
practical and artistic workman in giving to his handicraft the tinest 
finish and greatest adaptability known to the profession, which has 
been and is another line of its progress, its aim seeming to be to give its 
beneficiaries the most beautiful as well as most useful products, accord- 
ing to their requirements. 

Dr. Perry's life began in Locust creek township, Linn county, 
Missouri, on February 8, 1874. He is a son of Thomas J. and Martha 
B. (Burnett) Peery, who are also natives of this county. The father 
was born in 1848, and has always followed farming, in which he is 
still actively engaged. He has taken an earnest interest and a service- 
able part in local public affairs, notwithstanding the quiet and retiring 
nature of his pursuit, having served as a justice of the peace during 
the last twenty-five years. 

Joseph A. Peery, the doctor's grandfather, was born and reared 
in Parkersburg, in w^iat is now West Virginia, and came to Missouri 
in 1845, and to Linn county in 1846. He built a flour mill on Locust 
creek, three miles from Linneus, which was the first mill in that part 
of the county, and drew patronage from all parts of the surrounding 
country for many miles in all directions. He operated this mill for 
many years, but gave up all active pursuits in the declining period of 



458 HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 

liis life. The mill stood as a landmark until 1908, when it was dis- 
mantled, although it had become an object of veneration among the 
people. Its builder and first owner died in Linneus in 1866. 

During the Civil War he served in the Union army, enlisting at 
Linneus, and two of his sons went with him to the field of carnage, 
James W. and Henry C. Here is the record of one generation in use- 
fulness to the country in peace and war. But the family is more deeply 
rooted in American soil and has been of service to the American people 
through many generations. Its first representatives in this country 
came over from England early in our colonial history, locating at 
Jamestown, Virginia. Those living at the time of the Eevolution took 
part in that memorable struggle for the independence of the country, 
and in all subsequent times its members have been faithful to every 
call to public duty. The family from which the do,ctor is descended 
moved to Parkersburg many years ago and was established in the 
neighborhood of that city for a long time. 

Dr. Fred Peery has passed the whole of his life to the present 
time (1912) in this county, except when he was completing his 
academic education at Chillicothe, in the adjoining county of Living- 
ston, and while preparing for his professional work in the dental 
department of Washington University, in St. Louis, from which he 
was graduated in 1904. Prior to going to the University he taught 
school for a number of years, and in 1896 was elected county surveyor 
for a term of four years. 

After leaving this office he was variously occupied for a time, then 
made up his mind to become a dentist. Immediately after his gradu- 
ation he located in Brookfield, where he has ever since been actively 
and profitably engaged in the practice of his profession. He has for 
years been an active member of the Northeast Missouri Dental Society, 
and a valued contributor to its helpful proceedings, from which he has 
himself derived substantial benefits through the interchange of ideas 
with his professional brethren while giving them the advantages of his 
own knowledge. 

In his political relations the doctor has always been a firm and 
consistent Democrat, and for some years has been one of the local 
leaders of his party, serving it as secretary of its county central com- 
mittee and in many other ways through the wisdom of his advice in 
its councils and the energy and effectiveness of his work in the field. 
Fraternally he is connected with the Order of Odd Fellows and the 
Modern Woodmen of America. On March 7, 1897, he was united in 



HISTORY OF LINX COUXTY 



159 



marriage with Miss Mabel Grice. They have one child, their son, 
Algie L. 



JOEL W. CLEMENTS 

Joel W. Clements, one of the leading grocers of Brookfield, was 
born and reared to the age of thirteen in the state of Maryland, whose 
history is glorious in peace and war, and whose record challenges the 
admiration of all students of American chronicles. His life began in 
that state on September 5, 1864, and he is a son of Richard W. Clements, 
a sketch of whom will be found in this work. His parents and his 
grandparents were born and reared in Delaware, but the former lived 
for a time in Maryland. 

From there his parents came to Missouri in 1877, bringing their 
offspring with them, as they had decided to pass the remainder of their 
days here. Their son Joel grew to manhood in this county and com- 
pleted in its schools the education he had begun in those of his native 
state. For ten years after he took up the battle of life for himself he was 
engaged in farming, and following that was employed for seven years 
by B. J. G. Bettelheim selling farming implements. 

In 1904 he started business in the grocery trade on his own account, 
and in that line of commercial enterprise he has been occupied ever 
since. He has been successful in his mercantile venture, as he has in 
everything else he has undertaken, and is now regarded as one of the 
leading business men of the city, modern, up-to-date and progressive in 
every way, and familiar with every phase and feature of his trade. He 
studies the markets, and knows how to use them to the best advantage. 
He also studies the wants of the community, and keeps himself and 
his stock at all times prepared to fully provide for them in his lines of 
commodities. 

Mr. Clements is, moreover, a man of great public spirit and enter- 
prise in reference to public improvements and the development and 
improvemnt of his city and county. He takes an active interest and a 
leading part in the execution of all projects designed to promote the 
welfare of his locality and benefit its people, and his zeal in all such 
undertakings is highly appreciated for the intelligence he applies to it, 
the excellent judgment he exhibits and the great and stimulating 
energy he puts into the work. 

On December 23, 1885, Mr Clements was joined in marriage witli 
Miss Phoebe L. McNish, a native of Ontario, Canada. She is a daugh- 
ter of George and Levina McNish, who came to Missouri in 1867. 



460 HISTORY OF LIN^ COUNTY 

Mr. and Mrs. Clements have had six children, five of whom are 
living: George W., Laura L., Levina M., Joel, and Grace E. The father 
is connected fraternally with the Masonic order, the Order of Odd 
Fellows and the Woodmen of the World. His religious affiliation is 
with the Methodist Episcopal church. He is a zealous and effective 
worker in all these organizations and their other members hold his 
alliance with them in high appreciation. In politics he is a Democrat, 
always loyal to his party but never an active partisan or candidate for 
office. He is faithful, however, in the strict performance of all the 
duties of citizenship according to the highest standards, and is regarded 
by all classes of the people as one of their best business men and most 
useful and representative specimens of elevated manhood, with lofty 
ideals as his guide and a strong sense of duty as his controlling impulse 
and motive power. 



C. H. JONES 



It is a wide-spread and generally accepted belief that the city, as an 
abstract entity contains the head and the country the heart of every 
people. However this may be, it cannot be denied that all cities get 
the greater part of their heady or brainy forces from the country, 
either directly or not more than one or two generations removed. Most 
of the men and women who attain distinction in any line of activity are 
either themselves from the country, or their parents or grandparents 
were. Our brightest and most capable business men, for instance, in 
all our great cities and in most of our smaller ones, have gone from 
the farm to the counting house or other place of business, either directly 
or by successive stages of advancement. 

A striking illustration of this fact is furnished by the business 
career of C. H. Jones, the present cashier of the Linn County Bank in 
Brookfield, and the impelling and directing spirit of all its activities. 
He was born on his father's farm in Chariton county, Missouri, on 
February 21, 1868. He was reared to manhood on this farm and began 
his academic education in the country school in the neighborhood of 
its location. He afterward attended the State Normal schools at 
Chillicothe and Stanberry, this state, and commercial schools in both 
those cities. He finished his commercial training at the Gem City Com- 
mercial College in Quincy, Illinois, being graduated from that institu- 
tion, as he was from each of the other business schools which he 
attended. 

Mr. Jones is a son of John H. and Cornelia H. (Tyler) Jones, the 



HISTOEY OF LIXX COUNTY 461 

former a native of tlie state of New York and the latter of Vermont. 
The father was a farmer and moved to Illinois in early life. In 1864 
he came to Linn county and farmed here one year, then exchanged his 
residence to Chariton county in 1865, and passed the remainder of his 
life there, dying on the farm he had cultivated for twenty-two years in 
1887. The mother died there in October, 1911. They were the parents 
of three children, their son, C. H. Jones, and his two sisters. Two of 
the three are residents of this county. 

C. H. Jones began his business career as clerk in a bank at Mendon 
in his native county, in which he remained a year and a half. He then 
attended the Chillicothe Normal School for a time. On December 15, 
1892, he became a resident of Brookfield and a bookkeeper in the Linn 
County Bank. On January 1, 1893, he was made a director of the bank 
and its assistant cashier, and in 1904 was elected to the position in its 
official force which he now holds, and has filled continuously from that 
year. 

Mr. Jones has given the bank and its affairs his close and careful 
attention from his first connection with it, but he has not allowed it to 
engross the whole of his time and energy. His mind is too active in 
its operations and too comprehensive in its sweep to be satisfied with 
one interest or line of endeavor. Other avenues to business and social 
advancement have engaged him, and he has proven a valuable addition 
to the forces working in them. He is a stockholder in the Linn County 
Abstract Company and secretary and treasurer of the Brookfield Com- 
mercial club. 

On August 4th, 1898, he was married to Miss Effie A. Moore, the 
daughter of James A. Moore, a sketch of whom will be found in this 
volume. They have no children. In fraternal life Mr. Jones is con- 
nected with the Independent Order of Odd Fellows and the Benevolent 
and Protective Order of Elks. He is at all times deeply and intelli- 
gently interested in the progress and improvement of Brookfield and 
Linn county, and cheerfully does his part in helping to promote their 
advancement. He is universally regarded as one of Linn county's best 
and most enterprising and useful citizens. 



RICHARD W. CLEMENTS 

(Deceased) 
The late Richard W. Clements, who died on February 16, 1909, 
after a residence of thirty-two years in Brookfield, was for a long time 
one of Linn county's leading and most esteemed citizens. In business, 



469 HISTOEY OF LIXX COUNTY 

in public office and in private life he was an ornament to the county 
and one of its most forceful factors in connection with everything that 
aided in advancing its progress and improvement. His life among the 
people of the county was highly useful, and his death was universally 
regretted by them. 

Mr. Clements was born in Wilmington, Delaware, on August 28, 
1842. His parents, Joel W. and Margaret (Lamden) Clements, were 
also Delawareans by nativity, and lived a long time in their native 
state. The father was a Methodist Episcopal preacher born in 1807. 
He came to Missouri in 1870, and lived in Linn county until 1877, when 
he returned to Delaware, where he died the same year. His widow is 
still living in that state. She was his second wife. The first bore him 
three children, and by his last marriage he became the father of fifteen 
more. 

Richard AV. Clements, one of the offspring of the first marriage of 
his father, was reared to manhood in his native state, and began in its 
public schools the education which he completed by a four year's course 
at Harvard University. After leaving that institution he farmed for a 
number of years, then removed to Baltimore, and during the next seven 
years was in the employ of a large business house as bookkeeper. The 
year of the Centennial, 1876, was passed by him in Philadelphia. From 
there he returned to Delaware and engaged in the furniture trade for 
a few months. 

But the East grew wearying to him and he longed for a sight of 
the great striding West, with its vast breadth of view, its wonderful 
enterprise, its lofty aims and its great wealth of opportunity, and in 
August, 1877, he came to Missouri and located in Linn county. For a 
little while after his arrival he engaged in farming, and after that 
passed a short period as a clerk in the postoffice in Brookfield. While 
so engaged he was looking around for an opportunity to go into busi- 
ness for himself and soon found an opening that he considered promis- 
ing, as it proved to be. 

In 1879 he started an enterprise in the grain trade and milling 
industry, and this occupied him until his death thirty years afterward. 
While he conducted the business he built it up to large proportions and 
great activity, and made it one of the leading mercantile and com- 
mercial enterprises in this part of the state. He was possessed of fine 
business capacity, intense energy and a wide knowledge of trade con- 
ditions, all of which were valuable assets in the expansion of his opera- 
tions, and his genial manner and obliging disposition won him universal 
popularity. He was a gentleman of high character and fine social cul- 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 463 

ture, and the people of Linn county, and in all other localities in which 
he was known, recognised his true value and esteemed him accordingly. 

Mr. Clements was married in Delaware, on November 20, 1863, to 
Miss Martha E. Jackson. They became the parents of eleven children, 
six of whom are living: J. Watson, a successful groceryman; Charles 
W. and Carroll L., who are partners in the milling business, and a 
sketch of whom appears in this work; Mabel E., who is living at home 
with her mother; Harry H., who is engaged in railroading, and Albert 
R., who is conducting an active grain and coal trade. 

Their father was a Democrat and usually gave the candidates of 
his party hearty and effective support. But in the campaigns of 1896 
and 1900 he voted for Mr. McKinley for president on account of the 
finaucial question involved in the contests. He had no desire for public 
office himself, but did serve eight years as clerk and assessor of Brook- 
field. He was a member of the Masonic order for many years and 
exemplified its teachings in his daily life. He was also a member of 
K. of P., the Modern Brotherhood of America, the Woodmen of the 
World, and Knights and Ladies. His religious connection was with the 
Methodist Episcopal church, and in this also he took great interest and 
was a zealous and effective worker, serving the congregation to which 
he belonged many years as one of its stewards. In all the relations of 
life he was upright and correct, giving everybody who came in contact 
with him cause for admiration and respect, and standing forth, un- 
assuming and modest as he was, as one of the best and most representa- 
tive citizens of the county, a credit alike to the state of his birth and 
the state of his adoption, and altogether worthy of the universal esteem 
bestowed on him in both. 



JAMES C. TOOEY 



The son of one of Brookfield's pioneers, and the present head of the 
H. Tooey Mercantile Company, which is the outgrowth of a small store 
starting and kept by his father, that was the first real store in the place, 
James C. Tooey is entitled to special consideration as a link connecting 
the present with the past in a particularly interesting way, and the 
enterprise in industrial, mercantile and commercial life which now dis- 
tinguishes the city of his home with the dawn of all systematic industry 
and development on its site. 

Mr. Tooey was born in Brookfield on February 2, 1868, when the 
hamlet contained not many more than twenty scattered houses and as 



464 HISTOIIY OF LINN COUNTY 

many families. He is a son of James and Katherine (McCormick) 
Tooey, and was reared in the town of liis nativity and educated in its 
primitive public school, as it was in the time of his boyhood. In 1888 
he began clerking in the store of his cousin, Henry Tooey, whose life 
story is briefly told on another page of this volume. He remained with 
his cousin and in his employ until the death of the latter, when he 
succeeded him as president of the mercantile company which he had 
founded a number of years before. 

This institution is one of the leading mercantile enterprises in this 
part of the state and enjoys an extensive trade and a wide popularity. 

In politics Mr. Tooej^ is an unwavering Democrat, zealous in his 
loyalty to his party, but not an active partisan or in any sense an office- 
seeker. Fraternally he is connected with the Order of Elks, the Knights 
of Columbus and the Modern Woodmen of America. His religious 
affiliation is with the Catholic church. In all these organizations he 
takes an active interest and a leading part, and his membership in each 
is highly valued by all who are connected with or interested in them. 

On February 18, 1903, Mr. Tooey was united in marriage with Miss 
Martha Hunter, at the time a resident of the state of New York. They 
have two children, their daughters Elizabeth C. and Carolyn G., who 
greatly brighten their homestead and add to its attractiveness for the 
numerous friends of the family who frequent it, and who find it a center 
of refined and gracious hospitality and social culture. The parents are 
energetic and efficient aids in all worthy undertakings for the good of 
the city and county of their home and are highly esteemed wherever 
they are known. 



HENRY SORNBERGER 

In a section of the country in which the spirit of progress and 
development is as fruitful, energetic and productive as it has been in 
Linn county and its adjoining neighbors for a number of years of our 
recent history, a live, wide-awake and resourceful real estate dealer — 
the man who has or can find something to sell to meet every require- 
ment, or who can find a market and a purchaser for everything in his 
line that is up or can be taken up for sale — is a valuable agency in his 
community and a forceful factor in promoting the substantial welfare 
and advantage of its people of both classes, those who come and those 
who go. 

Henry Sornberger, of Brookfield, is such a man, and he has been 
using his ability and his opportunities to the full extent for his own 



HISTOEY OF LIXX COUNTY 465 

advancement, and for the general improvement and development of the 
region in which he operates, for a number of years. His transactions 
have been most extensive and fruitful in Linn county, but they have not 
been confined within its borders. He has been so successful in his opera- 
tions, and shown such entire mastery of the business in which he is 
engaged, that his dealings have extended far beyond the boundaries of 
his own county, and made scores of persons outside of its limits tribu- 
tary to his enterprise, as well as a much larger number resident in his 
own territory. 

It is not intended in these remarks to belittle the firm of which he 
is a member, or ignore the work of his partner, Mr. Bailey, for they are 
worthy of the highest commendation and entitled to full credit and the 
highest praise. And it is through them that Mr. Sornberger has been 
able, in large measure, to win his own triumphs. But these paragraphs 
are devoted specifically to the achievements of Mr. Sornberger, and must 
deal with them without more than incidental reference to the surround- 
ings that have made them possible and contributed to their magnitude 
and success. 

Mr. Sornberger is a contribution of the great state of Illinois to the 
business force of the country. He was born in Streator, in that state, 
on August 5, 1868, where his parents, Andrew and Susie (Bickerton) 
Sornberger, were living at the time. The father, who is still living, 
and is now more than eighty years of age, and one of the patriarchs of 
Kidder, Caldwell county, this state, was born in the state of New York, 
and the mother's life began in Newcastle, England. 

The father was a sailor in his young manhood and followed the sea 
for a number of years, visiting many countries and observing the cus- 
toms of their people. But for a long time he has been a farmer in the 
interior of Missouri, undisturbed by the activity of the world outside, 
and passing without notice the myriad footfalls on the stony pavements 
of its busy streets, and the showy records it has been seeking to 
emblazon on the annals of history. He rode the waves of many seas for 
a time, and as far as human power could do it, helped to command them 
to the service of mankind. He also engaged in the great and disastrous 
sectional strife in our country, and did his part to bring it to a conclu- 
sion serviceable to the interests of our race and promotive of the endur- 
ing v/elfare of every clime and tongue in the eifort to free human life 
from chattel slavery. 

During our Civil War he served in Company K, Eighty-third Illi- 
nois Volunteer Infantry, in defense of the Union, entering the army in 
1862 and leaving it with an honorable record in 1865, when 'Hhe war 



466 HISTOEY OF LIXN COUNTY 

drums throbbed no longer, and the battle flags were furled." He was 
at Fort Donelson when that Confederate stronghold surrendered to the 
superior prowess and equipment of the Federal arms, and with Greneral 
Thomas in all his heroic operations around Chattanooga. He was often 
in the very maelstrom of destruction, but he escaped disaster himself, 
and when his military service was ended, he returned to his former 
home and resumed the peaceful pursuits in which he had engaged 
before the war. 

The family moved from Illinois to Caldwell county, Missouri, in 
1869, and for many years thereafter the father engaged in farming. He 
has now been living retired from all active pursuits for more than six 
years. He acts and votes with the Republican party in political aft' airs, 
but he is not and never has been desirous of official station for himself. 
The mother has been a member of the Methodist Episcopal church dur- 
ing the last thirty years. The living children born to them number four. 
On the father's side the family is of German origin, and its American 
progenitors were early settlers in the state of New York. 

Henry Sornberger came to this state with his parents when he was 
only about one year old. Here he grew to manhood and was educated, 
attending the public schools and Kidder Institute in Caldwell county. 
From 1890 to 1907 he was employed by the Burlington Railroad as agent 
and telegraph operator along the line, serving four years in -Brookfield 
in this capacity. The long period of his employment b.y the railroad 
company passed without one mark of discredit being registered against 
him. That is the kind of man he has shown himself to be in every 
engagement he has had and in every relation of life, wherever he has 
lived. 

In 1907 he resigned his position with the railroad company in order 
to give his attention to the business in which he is now engaged, and in 
this he has been eminently successful, as has been already intimated. 
His continued triumph in his undertaking has been due to natural ability 
developed and quickened by training in other pursuits, and to the clear- 
ness of vision in seeing and the alertness in seizing and using to the best 
advantage the opportunities that have been presented to him or found 
by him in the constant and resourceful activity of his mind. 

Mr. Sornberger was married on March 18, 1894, to Miss Emma 
Lively, of Henry county, Missouri, a daughter of William H. Lively, 
long a highly respected farmer of that county, but now retired 
from all active pursuits and living in Henry county, Missouri. 
Mr. and Mrs. Sornberger have two children, their son Paul A., 
who was born on September 7, 1896, and their daughter Ofalita M., who 



HISTORY OF hm^ COUXTY 467 

was born on February 8, 1899. The parents belong to the Presbyterian 
church in Brookfield, and the father is a member of the Benevolent and 
Protective Order of Elks. 



GEORGE W. BAILEY 

Having passed the whole of the fifty-six years of his life to this 
time (1912) in this county, mingling freely in its activities, contributing 
his portion to its progress and development in several lines of useful- 
ness, and always, in every way, performing faithfully and wisely the 
duties of good citizenship, George W. Bailey is well and favorably 
known in all parts of the county, and richly deserves the firm hold he 
has on the confidence and regard of all classes of its people. He has 
been of service to the region in all the lines of endeavor to which he has 
turned his hand, and has also given it a good example of public spirit 
and enterprising progressiveness in all that pertains to its welfare. 

Mr. Bailey is wholly a product of Linn county. He was born on a 
farm within its borders, near New Boston, on May 9, 1855. He was 
reared on its soil and drew from that his stature and his strength. He 
was educated in its schools, acquired his social tastes and habits from 
association with its people, and even secured his professional training 
under the tuition of two of it leading lawyers. Whatever he is, there- 
fore, he is all Linn county's own, and in his manhood and his record he 
is a credit to the region of his origin and rearing. 

His parents were John G. and Mary (Forest) Bailey, the former a 
native of Kentucky and the latter of Virginia. The father was born 
on a farm near Glasgow, Barren county, in ''the dark and bloody 
ground," in 1818, and a few months afterward the family moved over- 
land by teams to Missouri, locating in Howard county. There the son 
of the household grew to manhood, his experiences being nowise differ- 
ent, perhaps, from those of other boys similarly situated. He helped to 
redeem a tract of land from the wilderness, attended the primitive 
schools of the time and locality, enjoyed the sports the frontier afforded, 
and endured the privations it entailed. 

In 1839, when he was twenty-one years old, he moved to Linn county 
and here improved a farm for himself, as he had helped to improve one 
for his father, a portion of his land being entered from the government. 
On this farm he lived all the rest of his days, dying on it in 189.7. His 
wife died there also, her death occurring in 1890.' *They had five sons 
and four daughters who grew to maturity, and of them eight are now 
living, four of them being residents of Linn county. 






^468 HISTORY OF LINX COUNTY 

\- The paternal grandfather, Jacob Bailey, was born and reared in 

'^«. Maryland: He was a soldier in the war of 1812, and made a good 
record as such in that short but decisive contest, which resulted in 
making our ships and sailors as free on the high seas as the Revolution 
did our people on land. In his young manhood he moved to Kentucky, 
and late in life to Missouri. He passed his last years in Linn county, 
this state, and died here at the advanced age of ninety-eight years. 

George W. Bailey was reared on his father's farm and educated in 
the public schools. After reaching a suitable age he taught school him- 
self for a number of years, and from 1879 to 1882 was editor and pro- 
prietor of the Brookfield Chronicle, a Democratic newspaper. In 1882 
he began the study of law under the direction of Messrs. Stevens & 
Smith, of Linneus, and in 1884 he was admitted to the bar. He began 
practicing at Brookfield, and for twenty-one years was attorney in that 
city for the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railroad, but during that 
period also kept up his general practice with growing success and 
patronage, and in addition carried on a flourishing real estate and loan 
business. 

Mr. Bailey now represents the Missouri Savings Bank of Kansas 
City, and does an extensive business all over Linn county and those that 
adjoin it on all sides. He was a justice of the peace for five years. But 
although a firm and faithful adherent of the Democratic party, he has 
never been desirous of holding office and has never sought any, either 
by election or appointment. His business has occupied his attention 
wholly, except wherein he has recognized the claims of citizenship and 
given time and energy to the duties involved in that. In this respect he 
has not been to any extent parsimonious, but has freely taken his part 
and performed his whole service to the city and county of his home in 
helping to promote every undertaking designed for the progress or 
improvement of either. 

In June, i^^, he was united in marriage with Miss Mollie Melville, 
of Albany, New York. They have one child, their daughter Lois M., 
who is the wife of -B«^ Jones of Topeka, Kansas. All the members of 
the family belong to the Episcopal church, and are zealous workers 
for its welfare and advancement. The parents are among the most 
esteemed citizens of the county, are prominent in all domains of useful- 
ness for the good of the people, and fine exemplars of Linn county hos- 
pitality, so.cial culture and elevated manhood and womanhood. They 
are widely known throughout this portion of the state, and in all places 
where they have acquaintances they have friends and strong popularity. 



HISTOBY OF LIXN COUNTY 469 

HENRY CLAY PREWITT 

Born with an adventurous disposition, and inheriting from his 
father a tendency to go about and see something of the world, Henry 
Clay Prewitt, one of the substantial and influential citizens of Linneus, 
this county, gratified his desire at an early age, and had a very inter- 
esting experience in doing it. But he fully satisfied his longing in one 
venture, and has ever since remained in one locality and been steadfast 
in his efforts to build that up and develop it to its highest condition in 
every way, while at the same time pushing his own advancement in a 
worldly way with all the energy and capacity he possessed. 

The place of Mr. Prewitt 's nativity was Fayette, Howard county, 
Missouri, and the date of his birth, June 29, 1835. He is a son of David 
and Nancy (Turner) Prewitt, and the only one of their nine children 
now living. The father was born in Halifax county, Virginia, on Decem- 
ber 21, 1791, and the mother in Madison county, Kentucky, in 1798. The 
father went with his parents to his wife's native county when he was a 
small boy, and in his new home he grew to manhood, was educated, and 
began his career. He and Miss Turner were married in about 1812, and 
for some time afterward he was in business in that county as a con- 
tractor. 

When he determined to move his family to the Farther West, of 
which Missouri was then a part, he and his wife made the trip on horse- 
back, he carrying one of their two children on his horse and she the 
other one on hers. Their journey through expanses of trackless wilder- 
ness and the beginnings of civilization in many places was full of inci- 
dent and interest, but the record of it has not been preserved. They 
arrived at their destination wayworn and weary, but not otherwise the 
worse for the long and tedious jaunt. Their household goods were 
transported down the Ohio and up the Mississippi and Missouri rivers 
to the point of landing them most convenient to their location, the latter 
being near Fayette in Howard county, which was then sparsely settled 
and largely undeveloped. 

The father took an active interest in the affairs of the county and 
was a leading man in building up and improving the portion of it in 
which the family lived. In 1832 he was elected sheriff of Howard 
county, and at the end of his first term was re-elected, serving two 
terms in all. In 1840 he moved his family to Linn county, and here he 
and his w^ife passed the remainder of their days. He died in Linneus 
on December 22, 1873, and the mother in the same place on March 16, 
1870. 



470 HISTOEY OF LINX COUNTY 

Their son Henry was but five years old when the change of resi- 
dence from Howard to Linn county took place. He obtained his educa- 
tion in subscription and public schools in this county, remaining at 
home until he reached the age of seventeen. Then, fired by the excite- 
ment over the discovery of rich deposits of gold in California, he deter- 
mined to brave the dangers and hardships of an overland journey to 
that state in search of a more rapid improvement in his fortunes than 
he saw opportunity for at home. In accordance with this purpose he 
joined a company about to start for the land of promise with ox teams, 
and boldly ventured on the expedition. 

The journej^ consumed five months, the party was attacked several 
times by hostile Indians, hunger, thirst, weariness and other discom- 
forts were frequent portions of its experience, and at times the progress 
was painfully slow and difficult. But the hardy adventurers patiently 
toiled on, and at length they reached the locality they sought and began 
operations in search of the golden treasure they had come so far to find. 
They located and "stuck their stakes" at Eldorado, which was then 
in Placer county, and Mr. Prewitt remained there four years and three 
months. He was successful, accumulating about $2,000 in his mining 
operations, and then came home by steamer down the Pacific, crossed 
the Isthmus of Panama by such means of transportation as were then 
available, and continued his journey by water across the Gulf of Mex- 
ico and up the Mississippi and Missouri to his father's residence, or as 
near as he could get to it by that route. 

The next year, when he was twenty-two, he engaged in mercantile 
business in Linneus, and he continued in trade in that city thirty-five 
years. He also took an active part in public affairs, and in 1888 was 
elected county treasurer. This office he filled two full terms to the 
entire satisfaction of the people of the county, and with a record highly 
creditable to himself. He has never been an office seeker, however, 
and in the case alluded to yielded to solicitation in accepting the nomi- 
nation and the renomination, because he felt that he might be of service 
to the county in the office if elected. His political connection is with 
the Democratic party, and his church affiliation is with the sect known 
as the Christians. 

Mr. Prewitt was married on February 22, 1857, to Miss Mary 
Frances Hunt, a daughter of Henry M. and Elizabeth (Frazier) Hunt, 
prominent citizens of Eay county in this state. Six children have been 
born of the union, three of whom are living: Flora, who is now Mrs. 
Wood O'Rear, of Linneus ; Elizabeth, who married Thomas Atkin- 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 471 

son and lives with him at Middlesboro, Kentucky; Maggie, who was the 
wife of E. A. Corey, of Linneus, both now dead; and Fannie Clay, the 
wife of Benjamin H. Smith, of Long Beach, Los Angeles county, Cali- 
fornia. In their several localities all the members of the family enjoy 
in a marked degree the regard and good will of the people among whom 
they live and labor. 



JOHN C. PHILLIPS 

Treading now close upon the verge of four score and ten years of 
life, and having passed the whole of his existence in this state, John C. 
Phillips of Linneus is a shining link connecting the present day activ- 
ities of this region with its primitive life of toil, privation and danger 
in its pioneer period of struggle, patience, endurance and hope. He saw 
the region when, clad in the barbaric splendor of the wilderness, it 
awoke at the voice of high command from its deep sleep of ages and 
rose to greet its lord, the genius of civilization. He has lived to see it 
filled with the homes of a prosperous and progressive people, well ad- 
vanced in the development of its resources, rejoicing in its beneficent 
civil institutions, and rich in all the essentials of cultivated life. The 
retrospect of his years may well give him pleasure in the reflection that 
he has been of service in helping to work out the transformation and 
bring about the great improvement he is able to see all around him. 

Mr. Phillips was born in Howard county, Missouri, on May 31, 
1835. His father, Jeremiah Phillips, was a native of Shelby county, 
Kentucky, where his life began on January 22, 1802, and the mother 
was of the same nativity as the son. Her maiden name was Jemima 
Lay, and she was the father's second wife. His first marriage was with 
Miss Martha Hackley of Howard county, this state, who died in that 
county in about 1825. She was the mother of four daughters, all of 
whom are now deceased. The second marriage of the pioneer farmer 
who helped to open Linn county to civilization, was a fruitful one, 
resulting in eighteen children and giving the immediate subject of these 
paragraphs seven brothers and ten sisters. Three of Mr. Phillips' 
brothers are living; George D., who is a resident of Portland, Callaway 
county; William J., whose home is in Howard county; and Jeremiah, 
who lives at Aurora, in Lawrence county. Their mother died in 1861 
and their father in 1876. But some years before the death of the latter 
he contracted a third marriage. 



472 HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 

He first came to Missouri in 1821 on a prospecting tour. At that 
time lie bought some land in Howard county and remained in the state 
one year. He returned to his Kentucky home, where he passed the next 
twelve years. In 1833 he came to this state, locating on the land he had 
previously purchased, and making such improvements on it as he was 
able to in the four years he spent on it. In 1837 he moved to Linn 
county and started another Missouri home in the wilderness, building 
a little log house for himself and his family about two miles north of 
the site of the present city of Linneus, which had just been indicated 
as the county seat, but was not declared such with full legal formality 
until three years later by an act of the legislature passed in December, 
1840, legalizing all that had previously been done toward making that 
tow'n the seat of justice and center of government in the county, includ- 
ing the change of its name from Linnville to the one it now bears, and 
under which its history has been developed. 

Mr. Phillips bought considerable land in this locality, most of it 
from the government, and owned 260 acres at the time of his death. He 
served as county treasurer and later as sheriff and collector of taxes. 
He was also circuit clerk and recorder for twelve years, his tenure of 
this office ending in 1861, when he resigned rather than take an oath 
of allegiance to the government of the United States at that time, the 
Civil war having begun and his symi3athies being with the Confederacy. 
After his resignation he lived- retired until his death. For many years 
he was an active and devoted member of the Masonic order, and 
throughout his life a firm and faithful Democrat of the old school in 
his political faith and allegiance. His father, George Phillips, a native 
and life-long resident of Kentucky, was of Scotch-Irish parentage, and 
the son of pioneers in the Blue Grass state. 

John C. Phillips was brought to Linn county by his parents when 
he was but two years old. He grew to manhood on his father's farm 
and secured what education he could in the primitive schools of the 
period of his boyhood and youth, when the schoolhouse was a crude 
log structure furnished with slab benches, and open for the instruction 
of the aspiring progeny of the surrounding country only during the few 
winter months of the year. He began the struggle for advancement 
among men on his own account as a clerk in a store at Milan, Sullivan 
county, in 1855, where he passed three years, fruitful in valuable ex- 
perience but meager in financial recompense for his services. While 
living there and clerking in the country store of his emploj^er he found 
the great happiness of his life in his marriage, on October 22, 1856, with 



"^ HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 473 

Miss Cynthia E. Sorrell, of Randolph county, a young lady of Ken- 
tucky parentage and, like himself, a pioneer product of Missouri. 

Of the nine children born of this union seven are living: Leonidas 
C, a resident of Linneus; Eliza, the wife of W. B. Craig, of the same 
city; Ernest H., who lives in Rock Island, Illinois; William J., who also 
dwells in Linneus; Sarah E., the wife of Robert Smith, of Brookfield; 
Maggie M., the wife of George W. Menefee, of Kansas City, Kansas; 
and Dr. Nova G., who has his home in the same great and growing 
metropolis. Their mother is still living also, venerable in years and 
strong in the regard of all who know her. 

In 1858 Mr. Phillips came to Linneus to live, having been appointed 
deputy circuit clerk and recorder. In 1861 he went out of office with 
his father and began clerking for Prewitt & Combs, dealers in general 
merchandise, with whom he remained until 1865. Two years later he 
started a grocery and hardware store of his own, which he conducted 
until 1875, when he was elected county treasurer. At the end of his 
term in 1877 he was re-elected, and when his second term closed in 1879 
he once more turned his attention to mer,cantile life, forming the firm 
of Phillips, Myer & Brinkley for the purpose of carrying on an enter- 
prise in the general merchandise trade. This enterprise continued with 
Mr. Phillips as a member of the firm until 1885, and the next year 
he opened a dry goods store in association with his sons Leonidas, John 
W. and Ernest, and for ten years thereafter gave the affairs of this his 
constant attention. In 1896 he retired from all active pursuits, deter- 
mined to pass the remainder of his days at rest from arduous labor and 
free from the cares of business as conducted in the rush of our twentieth 
century life. 

Mr. Phillips has been a life-long Democrat in politics, loyal in the 
support of his party and at all times devoted to its welfare, although 
not an aspirant for anything in its gift for himself. He and his wife 
have for many years been zealous and devout members of the Christian 
church, their connection with it dating from 1865, and their activity in 
its work for the good of the community being continuous from the 
start. They are esteemed in all parts of their city and county, and by 
all classes of the people, as most estimable and worthy citizens, whose 
years of active effort have been employed for the good of their fellow 
men and women, and whose record of usefulness fills out the gospel 
measure, according to their capacity and opportunities, and will live 
after them, a perpetual benefaction to the community which has the 
benefit of it in direct results and in the force of its high examples of sin- 
cere, serviceable and upright living. 



474 HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 

HENRY BROWN 

The native shrewdness, thrift and self-reliant resourcefulness of 
the Scotch people are well illustrated in the character, make-up and 
career of Henry Brown, one of the leading merchants of Marceline and 
senior member of the firm of Brown &. Taylor, hardware dealers in that 
city. He has been a resident of Marceline since 1895, and during the 
whole of his life in this county has been engaged in the hardware trade. 
He has prospered in his undertaking, given the community in which 
he operates a fine example of upright and straightforward merchandis- 
ing, attained the first rank in business circles in this part of the state, 
and won the lasting regard and good will of the people of all .classes and 
conditions. 

Mr. Brown was born near the village of Stuartfield, Aberdeenshire, 
Scotland, on December 17, 1858. His parents, George and Mary (Innes) 
Brown, were of the same nativity as himself, and passed the whole of 
their lives in the locality of their birth, where they died and were buried 
at the end of their estimable lives, universally respected and lamented. 
They had two sons and three daughters, their son Henry being the only 
one of their offspring who became a resident of the United States. 

He was reared and educated in Scotland and learned the hardware 
business there. But his native land did not seem to offer him oppor- 
tunities for advancement commensurate with his desires, and he deter- 
mined, even as a youth, to seek better chances elsewhere. Accordingly, 
in 1880, when he was twenty-two years old, he came to this country and 
took up his residence in Chicago. In that city he was employed for a 
period of fifteen years as stock clerk by the hardware firm of Hibbard, 
Spencer & Co. 

In 1895 he moved to this county and located in Marceline, where 
he at once founded the Brown Hardware Company, of which he was 
sole proprietor for a number of years. He then took M. H. Taylor in as 
a partner, and the firm has since been known as that of Brown & Tay- 
lor. It occupies a leading place among the business establishments of 
the city, and is one of the most enterprising and progressive mercantile 
institutions in this section of the state. The members of the firm know 
their business thoroughly, the marts of supply intimately and the wants 
of the community exactly, and they use all their knowledge for the 
benefit of their patrons and the good of their locality and the territory 
tributary to their trade in general. 

Mr. Brown was married in Nevada, the county seat of Vernon 
county, Missouri, on January 17th, 1887, to Miss Amelia Miller, a native 



HISTOPiY OF LIXN COUNTY 4:5 

of this state. TLey have three children: Mary I., who is now the wife 
of W. G. Ennis; Amelia, who was a student in the Pookville school, and 
Frances A., who is also attending school. The father has always taken 
a leading part in the public affairs of the city of his home. He served 
as an alderman two terms, during which the city water works and elec- 
tric light plant were constructed. Every interest of his city, township 
and county has his intelligent attention, and all good undertakings for 
their welfare have his cordial and effective support. In fraternal life 
he is a Freemason of the Royal Arch degree, and takes a prominent part 
in the work of the fraternity in this community. His church connection 
is with the Presbyterians, and in the congregation in which he holds 
his membership he is one of the elders. Linn county has no better mer- 
chant, man or citizen, and none for whom the people have a more ex- 
tensive or genuine regard. They know his worth and esteem him in 
accordance with it. 



JOHN H. PERRIN, M. D. 

Every physician of any practice is called upon to preside over the 
birth of many a child, but there are not many who, like Dr. John H. 
Perrin, of Marceline, are called upon to preside over that of a new town. 
He was on the site before Marceline was laid out, heard its first sound 
of life, aided at its baptism and helped to bind on its swaddling clothes. 
He has ever since been one of the watchers over its growth, promoters 
of its progress, contributors to its enlightenment and substantial aids 
in every way. 

Dr. Perrin was born in Howard county, Missouri, on December 1, 
1847, and is a son of William H. and Sarah E. (Winant) Perrin, the 
former a native of Kentucky and the latter of Boone county, in this 
state. The doctor's father was born in 1819 and was brought to Mis- 
souri by his parents in 1821. He grew to manhood and was married 
in Howard countj^ and in 1849 moved to Macon county, locating near 
Callao. "When the Mexican war began he promptly enlisted for the con- 
flict in a Howard county regiment, in which he served to the end of the 
war. 

He was also a soldier in the regular Confederate army under 
Colonel Bevier in the Civil War, and was discharged after the battle of 
Lexington, Missouri, on account of illness incurred in the service. In 
1868 he entered the ministry of the Baptist church, and remained in 
it until his death in 1873. The mother is still living. They were the 
parents of nine children, seven of whom are living, the doctor being the 



476 HISTORY OF LIN^^ COUNTY 

only one resident in Linn county. His paternal grandfather, Charles 
Perrin, was born and reared in Virginia, from whence he moved to 
Kentucky, and in 1821 came to Missouri, making the journey with 
teams. He died in Macon county. 

Dr. John H. Perrin was educated in the schools of Macon and 
Chariton counties and by private study. He taught school until 1877, 
and while doing so studied medicine under the direction of Dr. J. W. 
Proctor, of Lagonda, Missouri. In 1877 he entered the College of Phy- 
sicians and Surgeons in Keokuk, Iowa, from which he was graduated 
with the degree of M. D. in 1878. He practiced at Bynumville, Missouri, 
until 1887, then came to Marceline, being the first physician to locate 
in the neighborhood and arriving and taking up his residence here 
before even a village was started. 

From the time of his arrival until now (1912) he has remained 
here and been engaged in a large and active general practice, but de- 
voting special attention to diseases and affections of the eye. He has 
been very successful in his work and is highlj^ esteemed as a physician 
of extensive and accurate knowledge in his profession, both by his pro- 
fessional brethren and the people of the county in general, and his 
practice extends, with his reputation, over large portions of the adjoin- 
ing counties of Macon and Chariton. Wherever he is known his knowl- 
edge and skill are appreciated, and his genial nature makes him uni- 
versally popular. 

Dr. Perrin was first married in 1881 to Miss Levina Logan, who 
died in 1899. They had one child, their daughter Mary H., who is now 
at home. On September 4, 1907, the father contracted a second mar- 
riage, in which he was united with Miss Amanda Scherer, a native of 
Clark county, Missouri, who still abides with him and is one of the 
most esteemed matrons in the city. 

The doctor has served as an alderman of the city from the First 
ward two terms. He has also served one term in the lower house of the 
state legislature. He has always taken an earnest and intelligent inter- 
est in public affairs, and while in the legislature demonstrated his wide 
and comprehensive knowledge of matters of governmental principle 
and policy, local, state and national. He applied this knowledge in an 
effective way for the benefit of his constituents and the people of the 
whole state. 

For a number of years Dr. Perrin has been one of the prominent 
and influential members of the County and State Medical societies, and 
in their meetings his counsel has been always considered of high value 
and been much sought by the other members. He is a Knight Templar 



HISTORY OF LIXN COUXTY 471 

in Freemasonry, and in clmrch connection is a Baptist, having been a 
member of the church since 1873. One of the oldest physicians in the 
county, and with a life of usefulness distinguished for professional suc- 
cess, civic enterprise and public spirit and uprightness in all relations, 
it is an evidence of the virtue and intelligence of the people among 
whom he has so long lived and so effectively labored that he is crowned 
with their universal esteem, confidence and good will. 



WILLIAM E. PARKS 

A pioneer resident of Marceline, and now one of its leading busi- 
ness men, William E. Parks is entitled to double credit for his share in 
promoting the development and progress of the city, and giving it 
name, standing and influence in the commercial, industrial, political 
and social life of the county. He selected it as his residence in its in- 
fancy, has abode in it during all its subsequent years of advancement, 
has ministered to the welfare of its people in many ways, and is now 
providing for their comfort and convenience by conducting one of the 
best marts of trade within its limits, and aiding in the beneficial realiz- 
ation of every project undertaken for its enlargement, improvement 
and adaptation to its rapid growth. 

W. E. Parks is a native of McDonough county, Illinois, where his 
life began on December 2, 1856. He is a son of William H. and Eliza- 
beth (Crane) Parks, the former a native of Ohio and the latter of Penn- 
sylvania. The father was a farmer and a son of James Parks, who 
moved from Ohio to Illinois, where his life ended after a long career 
of upright living and usefulness as a good farmer and sturdy citizen. 
His son, William H. Parks, grew to manhood in Illinois, where William 
E. was born, and while yet a young man moved to Missouri in 1869, 
locating in Chariton county, six miles south of Marceline. Here he 
lived on a farm which he improved, remaining until 1892. He then took 
up his residence in Marceline, where he died in 1906. His widow is still 
living and is now past eighty years of age. He was a soldier in the 
Union army during the Civil War, enlisting in Company H, Twelfth 
Illinois Volunteer Infantry, in 1864, and served until the close of the 
war. 

William E. Parks reached his manhood on the Chariton county 
farm near Marceline and obtained his education in the district schools, 
at Brookfield Academy and in the State Normal School at Warrens- 
burg. After leaving the last named institution he taught school for 



478 HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 

twenty-three consecutive years. He located at Marceline in 1889, one 
year after the town was laid out, and built a dwelling for himself, 
which was among the first erected within the limits of the present city 
after it was founded and started on its noble career of progress and 
development. 

In this same year, 1889, W. E. Parks was married to Miss Ella M. 
Akers, a Missourian by nativity. They have had five children, all of 
whom are living: Rowena J., Chelsea C, Addison D., George A., and 
Ermine J. After his marriage the father continued to teach school for 
a number of years. He was principal of the Marceline High S,chool 
from 1896 to 1900, and of the Bucklin school in 1901-1902. In the year 
last mentioned he began merchandising in the hardware trade, and in 
this he has ever since been engaged. His store is one of the leading 
business places in the city, and is conducted according to his rule of 
the strictest integrity in everything. 

While taking a decided and earnest interest in public affairs, as 
every good citizen should, W. E. Parks is independent in politics, cast- 
ing his vote with a view to securing the best interests of the township 
and county, according to his light and knowledge on the case. In the 
affairs of the township, moral, educational and social, he is a prominent 
personage and a potent force for good. He has been a member of the 
school board during the last seven years, and the schools are the better 
for his aid in the supervision of them. Fraternally he is a Freemason 
and an Oddfellow, and in church connection he is a Presbyterian. Mar- 
celine township has no better citizen, and the people cheerfully admit 
this. 



GEORGE W. EARLY 

Relied on with all confidence as a financier, everywhere highly 
esteemed as a man, admired for his social qualities and universally 
popular as a public official, George W. Early, cashier of the First Na- 
tional Bank of Marceline, is easily one of the leading citizens of the 
community in which he lives. In many ways he has shown his deep 
and abiding interest in the welfare and progress of its people during 
the nineteen years of his residence among them, but in no way more 
than through his earnest and intelligent support of every worthy 
project designed to promote their betterment and augment their moral, 
intellectual and commercial influence in the state, and their comfort 
and convenience at home. 

Mr. Early was born in Vermont, Fulton county, Illinois, on January 



HISTOBY OF LINX COUNTY 479 

28, 1854. His father, Lewis J. Early, was a native of Ohio, and his 
mother, whose maiden name was Sarah Walker, was a Kentuckian by- 
birth. The father was a farmer in his native state and also in Illinois 
and Kansas, and moved to Kansas City, Missouri, in 1880. He died in 
Kansas City, Kansas, January, 1912. The mother died in 1875. Their 
offspring number four, George W., and his three sisters, all of whom 
are living. 

Mr. Early's paternal grandfather, Andrew Early, was a farmer in 
Ohio for many years and died in that state. He was descended from old 
Scotch-Irish ancestry, and the salient characteristics of that combina- 
tion in the formation of human traits, habits and tendencies, all of 
which are admirable, have been prominent in all members of the family 
for generations, and have formed the basis of the successes they have 
won in their various localities and stations in life. 

George W. Early grew to manhood in Ohio and Kansas and ob- 
tained a good common school education, with considerable special train- 
ing which well prepared him for the duties in which he is now engaged 
and others that have occupied him at different times and in various 
places. His entrance into the world of business was as a bookkeeper. 
He was treasurer of the Great Western Manufacturing Company in 
Leavenworth, Kansas, for fifteen years, and engaged in banking at 
Atchison in the same state for a time. 

In 1892 he came to Marceline and took charge of the old Bank of 
Marceline, of which he had control until it was reorg'anized as the First 
National Bank of Marceline, and since then he has been its cashier. 
Under the impulse of his quickening spirit of enterprise and progress- 
iveness, his breadth of view and accurate knowledge of the banking 
business, his prudent management and his genial social qualities, the 
bank has enjoyed great prosperity and a considerable increase in its 
business. 

Mr. Early was married on February 11th, 1880, to Miss Mary Calla- 
han, a native of Platte county, Missouri, and the daughter of Dr. H. B. 
and Sarah (Metcalfe) Callahan, esteemed residents of that county for 
many years. Mr. and Mrs. Early have two children, their son Henry B., 
who resides in Prescott, Arizona; and their daughter Elizabeth, who 
is now Mrs. Henry Reed, of Kansas City, this state. 

Mr. Early has long been connected with the official life and public 
life of Marceline. He has served on the school board and as township 
trustee for fifteen years, and his length of tenure of these offices is the 
best evidence of the value and appreciation of his services in them. 
Fraternally he is a Freemason and in religious affiliation he is connected 



480 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

with the Baptist church. In all the relations of life he has shown him- 
self worthy of the full confidence and high esteem of the people, and he 
has them. 



FIRST NATIONAL BANK OF MARCELINE 

The original of this enterprising, progi'essive and highly valued 
financial institution, which is such a credit and of so much service to 
the thriving and expanding city of Marceline, and the country which 
surrounds that pleasing municipality, was the Bank of Marceline, a 
state institution, which was organized on Januarj^ — , 1888, with a cap- 
ital stock of $35,000, the president of which was Benjamin F. Sights. 
In 1898 the capital stock was reduced to $25,000, and in 1900 the insti- 
tution absorbed the Santa Fe Exchange Bank. With this addition to 
its resources the Bank of Marceline had a better outlook and prospered 
more extensively. 

In 1902 the gentlemen who now control the First National Bank 
took charge of the institution, and in 1904 reorganized it under its 
present name, and with the officers who still direct its affairs. These 
are: William G. Lancaster, president; George W. Early, cashier, and 
F. G. Lancaster, assistant cashier. The board of directors is composed 
of the gentlemen named and Dr. W. S. Woods and H. W. Pratt, of Kan- 
sas City, Missouri. Under its new birth and baptism the bank has pros- 
pered steadily and has steadily gained friends, patrons and business. 
It is now one of the strong and sound fiscal institutions of Linn county, 
and has an excellent reputation throughout the state for safe and skill- 
ful management, an enterprising and up-to-date spirit, and a disposition 
of liberality toward the business houses and private citizens of the ter- 
ritory tributary to its operations, which is extensive and increases year 
by year. 

William G. Lancaster, the president of the bank, is a native of 
Clinton county, Missouri, where his life began on November 27, 1856, 
and has been continued in many places and amid a great variety of cir- 
cumstances. He is a son of Green B, and Rebecca J. (Roberts) Lancas- 
ter, who were natives of Estill county, Kentucky. The father came to 
Missouri with his mother about the year 1834. The family located in 
Clinton county, where he grew to manhood, completed his education 
and is still living, and, although advanced in years, continues the farm- 
ing operations whicli have formed the occupation of his life. 

The life story of this estimable and venerable man connects the 



HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 481 

present with a past in our country's history which seems remote in this 
age when time is counted rapidly. He was interested in public events 
when General Jackson retired from the presidency; felt the thrill of 
the historic ''Log Cabin" campaign of 1840, which swept General Har- 
rison, of Tippecanoe fame, into the same office; took part himself in 
the Mexican War, and was deeply concerned over the events which 
brought on the Civil War. He has also witnessed the remarkable growth 
and development of our country since that awful sectional conflict 
wiped the stain of chattel slavery from our proud escutcheon, and is 
now able to rejoice over the wonderful wealth and power of the land; 
and it is to be said in his favor that, according to his means and oppor- 
tunities, he has contributed to the results the American republic 
has wrought out. 

The elder Mr. Lancaster was married in 1847 to Miss Eebecca J. 
Roberts, and by this marriage became the father of five sons and seven 
daughters, one of the sons being William G. Lancaster of this sketchy 
The mother of these children died in 1869, and in 1871 the father mar- 
ried again, uniting himself with Miss Ella Martin, who bore him six 
daughters and one son, making him the father of nineteen children in 
all, a number that would have done him credit in the patriarchal age of 
human history. 

William G. Lancaster grew to manhood in Dekalb county, Missouri, 
and obtained his education in country schools. In 1874, when he was 
eighteen years of age, he went to Wyoming, where, during the next ten 
years he was engaged in ranching. On the wide plains of that state he 
had many thrilling and some hair-raising adventures, some narrow 
escapes from death by violence, many hardships from the rage of the 
elements, and a continuous experience of life in an atmosphere of excite- 
ment and hazard. 

In 1883 he returned to Missouri and located at Winston, Daviess 
county, where for four years he was engaged in the drug trade. He 
then became cashier of the Bank of Winston, a position which he filled 
with great acceptability until 1901. In the meantime, however, in 1897, 
he assisted in organizing the Bank of Altaraont, Missouri, and acted as 
cashier of that also. In 1901 he sold his interests there and became in- 
terested in the Bank of Excelsior Springs in Clay county, this state, 
which he served as president one year. In 1902 he sold out there and 
moved to Marceline, and here he has ever since resided and been en- 
gaged in business. 

On August 18, 1883, Mr. Lancaster was married to Miss Vivian 
Tracy, of Maysville, Missouri. They have four children: lelah E., who 



483 HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 

is the wife of Charles S. Steiner, of Marceline; Fred G., assistant cashier 
of the First National Bank of Marceline ; Glenn E., who is also connected 
with the bank; and Tracy M., who is living at home with his parents. 
Like their parents, the children are held in the highest esteem by all 
classes of the people throughout the county, and wherever else they are 
known. 

Mr. Lancaster is a Democrat in his political affiliation and loyal to 
his party, but he has never held or sought a political office. Fraternally 
he is a Freemason of the Royal Arch degree. He is regarded as one of 
the best and most useful citizens Linn county numbers among its people. 



CHARLES WILLIS GREEN 

Native force of character, general capacity for development, self- 
reliance and resourcefulness are qualities of manhood that will always 
tell to the commanding advantage of their possessor, and if he has at 
the same time industry, integrity and a strong sense of duty, his success 
in life is assured from the beginning under almost any circumstances 
that do not deprive him of the power to work. And in a country of 
such wealth of opportunity as ours presents, such circumstances are 
scarcely to be feared. 

Charles Willis Green, founder, owner and editor of the Brookfield 
Argus, is a gentleman who possesses all the qualities enumerated above, 
and others of great value and usefulness, all of which he has exemplified 
before the residents of Brookfield in his daily life from boyhood, and in 
a manner so forceful yet unostentatious, that he has won their universal 
admiration. He began life dn' his own behalf at the very bottom of his 
calling, and by his industry, ability and excellent management he has 
risen to a position of great influence and high standing in it. 

Mr. Green was born in Lake county, Ohio, on July 29, 1860. He is 
a son of Nelson L. arid Maria C. (Williams) Green, of the same nativity 
as himself. The father was a farmer and nurseryman, and brought his 
family to Missouri and Linn county in 1866. Here he followed the same 
pursuits as in his native state, locating for the purpose on a farm one- 
half mile south of Bucklin. He lived on this farm four years, then 
moved north of Brookfield. He died in 1908. The mother is still living 
in Brookfield. They became the parents of two children, their son 
Charles and their daughter Alma, who is now the wife of W. A. Kaup 
of Brookfield. 

The grandfather, Jesse Green, was born and reared in Massachu- 




C. W. GREEN 



HISTORY OF LIXxN" COUNTY 483 

setts, then moved to Lake county, Ohio, where he was a pioneer. He 
also was a farmer and passed the remainder of his life in the county to 
which he moved from his native state. He married Miss Cynthia 
Lovett. Both died many years ago, but well advanced in years, having 
lived long enough to see the wilderness in which they located in early 
life grow into great fruitfulness of production and become fragrant 
with the odors of industry. 

Charles Willis Green was but six years old when his parents 
brought him to this county. He grew to manhood here, was educated 
in the Brookiield public school, and at the age of fifteen began his 
craft and business career by becoming a printer's devil in the office of 
the old Brookfield Chronicle. He finished learning his trade in the 
employ of the Brookfield Gazette, and worked at it until 1883. In that 
year, although he was but twenty-three years old, he founded the 
Brookfield Argus, which has occupied his time and attention ever since, 
and had the benefit of his business, mechanical and intellectual ability, 
until he has made it one of the best newspapers in northeastern Mis- 
souri. For a more extended account of it see the chapter on News- 
papers to be found elsewhere in this work. 

The journalistic creation of his enterprise and capacity has been 
one of the objects of greatest solicitude to Mr. Green. It has been his 
purpose from the beginning to raise and develop his bantling, as it was 
at first, into an influence for good in the community, and he felt that he 
had the power to do this. All who know of it agree that he has succeeded 
and that the paper well deserves its rank. He is a strong, incisive and 
sparkling editorial writer, a good business manager and a man of clear- 
ness of vision who always sees the needs of his community and has the 
courage, energy and progressiveness to aid in providing for them 
through the columns of his paper and other channels. 

Socially Mr. Green is very popular. He is genial, courteous and 
companionable at all times, a good conversationalist, and also a good 
listener, which is a rarer trait. He is a warmly welcomed addition to 
any social gathering, and always one of its radiant sunbeams. He is a 
genuine good fellow in the best sense of the term, and probably has 
now every friend he ever made, even though he has long been very 
active in politics and has encountered some of the asperities of 
journalism. 

The interesting subject of tbis brief review has twice ''bowed 
beneath the flowery yoke of Eros." He was first married in September, 
1885, to Miss Nellie J. Jones, a daughter of Rev. Thomas A. and Jane 
Jones, and by this marriage became the father of one child, his daugh- 



484 HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 

ter Frances Loraine, wlio is now a teacher. Her mother died on Decem- 
ber 10, 1896, and on November 2, 1899, the father contracted a second 
marriage in which he was united with Miss Florence Burnett of Brook- 
field, a daughter of James and Mary (Ware) Burnett, early settlers in 
Linn county. Of this union two children have been born, Howard 
Elliott and Marion, both of whom are living. 

Mr. Green 's political affiliation has always been with the Democratic 
party, and he has been very energetic and efficient in its service. He 
served as commissioner from Missouri to the Columbian Exposition in 
Chicago and the later Pan American Exposition in Buffalo, New York. 
In 1897 he was chief clerk of the Missouri House of Representatives. 
He has also been a member of the city council and president of the 
board of education. At the present time (1912) he is one of the regents 
of the Kirksville State Normal School and president of the Commercial 
Club of Brookfield. His religious connection is with the Episcopalian 
church, and he is one of the vestrymen of the parish to which he belongs. 

As an evidence of the extent to which his ability and usefulness are 
appreciated it should be further stated that his political party has 
chosen him on several occasions as one of its representatives in state 
and national conventions, and he has been for years the local corres- 
pondent for the leading daily papers of Kansas City and St. Louis. 
But none of the distinctions bestowed upon him can abate his great 
love for his home and his library, or his warm and enthusiastic attach- 
ment to Brookfield. He is a great booster for the city and Linn county 
and edited the chapter on Brookfield which appears in this work. In 
fact it is one of his sources of commendable pride that he is an ardent 
champion for the present attractions and future promise of his home 
city, and he also has pride of the same kind in his paper as one of the 
city's established and influential institutions. The publishers of this 
history run some risk of seriously offending his modesty by saying so 
much in his favor, but they know and the residents of Brookfield know 
that he deserves it all. 



DR. WILLIAM W. ELLIS. 

Having been engaged in a large and active general practice as a 
physician and surgeon in the eastern part of Linn county during the 
last twelve years, and with headquarters at Marceline all the time 
except the first two. Dr. William W. Ellis, whose home is now in Marce- 
line, has become well known to the people of this section, and his serv- 
ices to them have been such as a doctor and a citizen, that he is held in 



HISTORY OF LIN:^ COUNTY 485 

the highest esteem by every class and condition of them. He is well 
and favorably known throughout the county, in fact, and is everywhere 
regarded as a good representative of all that is best and most admir- 
able in their citizenship. 

Dr. Ellis was born near Keytesville, Chariton county, Missouri, on 
November 8, 1873, and is a son of Wesley and Adelia (Doughty) Ellis, 
also natives of Chariton county, this state. The fatlier has been a mer- 
chant and farmer, and has prospered in both lines of his business. He 
is now, however, retired from active pursuits, and he and his wife are 
residents of Marceline, where they located in 1898. He was twice elected 
mayor of Marceline, and his administration of the affairs of the city 
brought him great credit while it was in progress, and is still remem- 
bered with gratification by the people and often highly commended yet. 
The mayor's father, Pilliman Ellis, came from Kentucky, and the 
doctor's mother's parents from Tennessee. The doctor's grandparents 
on both sides died in Chariton county, where they passed many yearsr 
of their lives. They became residents of this part of the state when 
it was still wild and largely unsettled, and their fortitude was often 
called into requisition by the privations and hardships they encountered, 
while their courage was severely tested by the dangers which sur- 
rounded them at all times for some years after their arrival in the 
country. But they lived to transform portions of the wilderness into 
good and fruitful farms, and so left their impress on the region they 
improved by their labors and their influence, and the proofs of their 
usefulness and fidelity to duty in a form that makes them manifest 
and is enduring. 

Dr. William W. Ellis obtained his academic education in the public 
schools of Chariton county. He began the study of medicine when he 
was but eighteen years of age, entering what is now Drake University, 
in Des Moines, Iowa, in 1891, as a student in the medical department. 
He was graduated from that institution in 1895 with the degree of 
M. D., and at once entered upon the practice of his profession at 
Westville in his native county. 

In 1897 he came to Marceline, but soon afterward moved to New 
Boston. There he remained two years and was married in 1899, unit- 
ing himself with Miss Susie Jones. They have no children. After his 
marriage the doctor returned to Marceline and opened a drug store. 
He also continued his practice, and during all of the subsequent years 
he has been actively and busily occupied with his dual occupation of 
doctor and druggist, and has been very successful in both lines of his 
work. 



486 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

Dr. Ellis believes in progress, and as his profession is a very 
progressive one he makes every effort to keep pace with it. To this 
end he is a zealous member of the County and State Medical Societies, 
and takes an active part in their proceedings. He is also a diligent 
and thoughtful student of the best literature of his profession, partic- 
ularly that which has a bearing on his work as physician and his busi- 
ness as a druggist. 

In the public affairs of his township and county Dr. Ellis has taken 
a cordial interest and an active part from the time of his arrival here. 
He served as county coroner two years, and in many other ways has 
been of great benefit to the people outside of the direct channels of his 
profession and his business. While not an active partisan, and not 
eager for official consequence in any way, he is loyal to the political 
party to which he belongs, and at all times energetic and effective in 
the promotion of the general welfare of his locality in every way open 
to him. Fraternally he is a Freemason of the Knights Templar degree^ 
and he is also a Noble of the Mystic Shrine in the Masonic order. His 
practice is large and remunerative, his business is extensive and profit- 
able, and his standing with the people of the county is in the first rank 
of manhood and business enterprise. Linn county is well pleased to 
name him as one of its most estimable and representative professional 
men, merchants and citizens. 



DR. WILLIAM A. CATER 

An early arrival at what is now Marceline, having located there 
about the time the town was founded, in fact, and since then prominent 
in the professional, mercantile and public life of the place. Dr. William 
A. Cater may well be put forward by the people of Bucklin township 
as one of their most estimable, useful and representative citizens. He 
has been earnestly and actively interested in the growth and develop- 
ment of the township, the increased comfort and convenience of its 
people and the promotion of all its beneficial activities from the time of 
his arrival, and his services to the community in every way are highly 
appreciated. 

Dr. Cater is a native of Ohio, born near Barnesville, Belmont 
county, on May 13, 1854. His parents, Elijah B. and Elizabeth (Barnes) 
Cater, were also born in Ohio, and reared, educated and married there. 
The father is a Methodist clergyman, and now resides at Kirksville in 
this state. He brought his family to this state in 1865, and since then 



HISTOKY OF LINN COUNTY 487 

has lived in all parts of northeastern Missonri. He is an indefatigable 
worker for his church and very liberal in dealing with it. By his indus- 
try, zeal and persuasive power, he has been instrumental in the erection 
of more church edifices than any other man in Missouri, and has given 
$200 to each one he has had erected, not with a view to making himself 
popular, but solely as an evidence of his great devotion to the work in 
which he is engaged. 

The mother died in 1856, and the father afterward contracted a 
second marriage in which he was united with Miss Mary E. Elliott, 
who is still living. By his two marriages he became the father of eleven 
children, of whom nine are living. He is of English descent, and can 
trace his ancestry back through the chronicles of England for many 
generations. His forefathers in this country numbered several genera- 
tions also, the American progenitor of the family having come to this 
country at an early date. 

Dr. William A. Cater was but eleven years of age when his father 
moved to this state, and but two when his mother died. The son of a 
preacher in the itineracy, and with no mother to look after his welfare, 
guide his footsteps right in childhood and youth, and with frequent 
changes in his home, the doctor grew to manhood almost according to 
his own inclinations, and secured such education as he could in the 
migratory life he was obliged to lead during his minority. He attended 
the public schools in various places, and having, for some years, his 
professional career in mind, he made good use of his opportunities. 

At the age of twenty-one he began the study of medicine, and 
after a due course of preparation, entered the American Medical Col- 
lege in St. Louis, from which he was graduated with the degree of 
M. D. in 1878. He began practicing at Macomb, Illinois, where he 
remained three years, then located at Edina in Knox county, and 
there he remained considerably longer. From Edina he went to west- 
ern Kansas, and, after passing some time there, located at Marceline 
in 1888, being among the first physicians to arrive and take up resi- 
dence in the promising village which had just been spoken into being 
by the enterprise and foresight of its founders. 

After his arrival here Dr. Cater was actively engaged in and 
exclusively devoted to general practice for a number of years. He 
then opened a drug store, which was badly needed in the community, 
and which he is still conducting. Since starting this enterprise his 
time has been divided between it and his practice, which still continues 
to occupy him and helps to make him a very busy man and greatly in 
demand. His practice has been very extensive and made him well 



488 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

known to the residents of all parts of the county, and wherever he is 
known he is held in the highest esteem for his professional knowledge, 
his wisdom and skill in the application of it, his high character as a 
man and his usefulness as a citizen. 

In business circles he also stands high as a conscientious and 
upright merchant, modern in methods except as to the tricks of the 
trade, and enterprising and studious concerning the needs of the com- 
munity in his lines of commodities and in his efforts to supply them. 
With regard to the material affairs of the city, township and county 
of his home he is public spirited and progressive, always willing to aid 
in the promotion of any worthy project involving the betterment of his 
locality, and energetic and intelligent in the application of his influence 
and force. He has taken a deep interest in local political matters also, 
and served the city well and wisely as its mayor, being the second man 
elected to the office and receiving a majority of more than 300 votes 
at the time of his election. 

Dr. Cater has four children. His son Roy is a physician in active 
practice. His son Donald is a druggist. The other two are his daugh- 
ter Ruth and an invalid son. For almost thirty years Doctor Cater 
has lived among these people, with his life an open book before them, 
and the universal esteem felt for him and manifested toward him 
demonstrates that his record is a good one, and that his life here has 
been useful and estimable. Bucklin township claims no better or 
more elevated citizen, and none for whom its people have a higher or 
more sincere and cordial regard. 



DR. BENJAMIN B. PUTMAN 

The oldest physician and surgeon in Linn county, and with a 
record of forty-seven years of active practical work in the profession 
to his credit, Dr. Benjamin B. Putman, of Marceline, has rendered the 
people amwng whom he has so long and so effectively labored services 
that may be estimated in the universal regard and good will of the 
communities which have had the benefit of them, but whose value 
cannot be measured by any computation of figures or mere statement 
of facts. He is entitled to rest from his arduous endeavors to amelior- 
ate the sufferings of his fellow beings for the remainder of his life, but 
he is as energetic in his work and as diligent and conscientious in the 
performance of it as he has ever been, and in this he is impelled by 



HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 489 

the high sense of duty that has always characterized him in everything 
he has undertaken. 

Dr. Putman has more than an ordinary interest in Linn county and 
its residents, for it is the place of his birth, his academic education, 
his early and his later associations, and the work of his entire life to 
the present time. He came into being in North Salem township on 
June 10, 1844, and is a son of William and Sarah (Head) Putman, the 
former a native of Kentucky and the latter of Virginia. The father 
was a farmer and came to Missouri in 1840, taking up his residence in 
Sullivan county. Two years later he moved to Linn county and bought 
a tract of wild land, on which he lived until 1866. He then changed his 
residence to Brookfield, and later moved to Bucklin, where he died in 
1888. The mother died in 1864. They were the parents of ten chil- 
dren, of whom the doctor is the only one now living. The father was 
married three times, but had children by none except the first marriage. 

The doctor's grandfather, James Putman, was born and reared in 
Kentucky, but passed the last half or more of his life in Indiana, Avhere 
he died, universally respected as a citizen and as a man. He was a 
farmer in his native state and also in the state of his adoption. His 
father, whose name was also Henry Putman, was a Kentuckian, too, by 
nativity, and passed almost the whole of his life in that state. But 
his long and useful career was closed in Indiana, where he located a 
few years before his death. 

Dr. Benjamin B. Putman began reading medicine soon after com- 
pleting the course of instruction in the public school near his home on 
his father's farm in North Salem township. His first studies in the 
profession were pursued in the office and under the direction of Dr. 
D. I. Stevenson in Linneus, which he entered as a student in 1863. In 
1864 he took one course of lectures at the St. Louis Medical College, 
after which he practiced until 1872. In that year he again entered 
the St. Louis Medical College, and before the year ended he was grad- 
uated with the degree of M. D. 

The first year of his practice was passed at North Salem, and at 
the end of that period he moved to Bucklin. In that town he remained 
twenty-eight years, during twenty of which he was engaged in the 
drug business in connection with his practice. In 1894 he changed his 
residence to Marceline, and here he has lived busily occupied with a 
large and active practice throughout the surrounding country ever 
since. From the time of his arrival at Marceline he has also been 
surgeon for the Santa Fe Railroad, and during the last fifteen years he 
has occupied the same professional relation to the mines. 



490 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

Feeling the need and realizing the value of organized effort in his 
work, in order that he might have the benefit of the knowledge and 
experience of his professional brethren, and give them the benefit of 
his own. Dr. Putman many years ago joined the State and District 
Medical Societies, and he has been active in his membership and fruit- 
ful in his contributions to the advancement and usefulness of these 
societies ever since, and his membership in each is highly valued by 
the other members. 

Busy as he has been in his professional work, and ardently as he 
has devoted himself to it, the doctor has not allowed it to take all his 
time and energy. He is a man of great public spirit and enterprise, 
and earnestly and warmly devoted to the welfare of the city and county 
of his home. His interest in their progress and improvement in every 
way has always been active and manifested in intelligent and energetic 
support of all commendable undertakings for their betterment in every 
way, moral, mental, social and material. He has served as mayor of 
Marceline and looked after its needs with earnestness and zeal gov- 
erned by breadth of view and excellent judgment. The good of the 
city was his only aim in the performance of his official duties, and he 
discharged them in a way that was highly satisfactory to the people, 
beneficial to the city and creditable to himself. 

In political relations Dr. Putman is affiliated with the Democratic 
party, and is an effective advocate of its principles in word and deed, 
although he cannot be classed as an active partisan and is by no means 
an intolerant one. In fraternal connection he is a Freemason of the 
Knights Templar degree, cordial in his admiration of the fraternity 
and ardently devoted to its welfare everywhere and in every way. The 
people of Linn county of all classes and conditions look upon this high- 
toned and honorable gentleman as one of their leading physicians and 
surgeons, best men and most estimable and useful citizens. 



J. E. ELLIS 



From keeping a little store in a small country village to being the 
proprietor of a big department emporium in a city which numbers its 
residents by the thousands, and conducting the most extensive and 
up-to-date business of its kind within a large range of populous and 
progressive country, seems a long step to the casual observer, and 
would in many cases be more than could be taken in a lifetime. But it 
is a step that J. E. Ellis, the leading merchant of Marceline, has taken 



HISTORY OF LIXX COUNTY 491 

in less tlian fifteen years, and without any great effort. But Mr. Ellis 
has that within him as part of his makeup which enabled him to do 
easily what others would have to strain at, or could not accomplish at 
all. And he has never been in doubt as to what he could do. For he 
has known himself and has relied on the business capacity he felt that 
he possessed with unfaltering faith, and this has been one great element 
in his success. 

Mr. Ellis is a Missourian by birth, education, social training and all 
the experience of his life to the present time (1912). He was born 
near the village of Wien, in Chariton county, on June 18, 1871, and is 
a son of Wesley and Adelia (Doughty) Ellis, a short account of whose 
lives will be found in the sketch of Mr. Ellis' brother, Dr. William W. 
Ellis, elsewhere in this volume. The father was a merchant for a 
number of years and his sons appear to have inherited the mercantile 
instinct from him. At any rate, they possess it in large measure and 
of high quality, and they use it for the benefit of themselves and their 
community. 

J. E. Ellis grew to manhood in Chariton county and obtained his 
education in its district schools. He began his business career in 
Westville in 1892, keeping a small country store there, and for four 
years enduring the humdrum life, narrow range and small profits of 
such an enterprise, while all the time his spirit longed for an under- 
taking of far greater magnitude and with the spice of more extensive 
activity and variety in a business way. But he was simpling biding 
his time and laying his plans, and when his hour of opportunity came 
he vaulted easily and gracefully to the height he was fitted and 
destined to occupy in mercantile circles. 

In 1896 he moved to Marceline and, in company with his brother. 
Dr. Ellis, opened a small drug store and grocery. This expanded rap- 
idly in volume and value, but not rapidly enough to satisfy the desires 
of Mr. Ellis. Accordingly, in 1905, he built the business block he now 
occupies and started his present large department store, which is the 
only one in Marceline and has the most extensive trade in this part of 
the country. The block in w^iich the business is housed is one of the 
most massive and imposing in the city. It is commodious in size, 
complete and modern in appointments, and arranged with every con- 
sideration for the comfort and convenience of those Avho patronize the 
business it contains. 

Mr. Ellis is very enterprising in his business. He studies the wants 
of the community and the best methods of providing for them. He 
wakes a specialty ol buying whole stocks of goods at low rates, and is 



492 HISTORY OF LIXJs^ COUNTY 

thereby able to supply his customers with whatever they need at mod- 
erate cost to them, giving them, at the same time, a comprehensive 
mass and wide range of commodities to select from, all first rate in 
material and workmanship and uj) to the latest turn of the factories in 
style and finish. 

While taking all of a good citizen's part in public affairs, Mr. Ellis 
has never been an active partisan in politics, although a man of decided 
convictions in reference to public questions, and has never sought or 
desired a political office of any kind. He prefers to leave the manage- 
ment of state, county, township and city affairs to those who have a 
taste for the work, while he devotes himself to the line of usefulness 
for which he feels best fitted and most completely qualified. 

But where the interests of his locality in a moral, mental, social or 
material way are involved, he is full of energy and wide-awake in atten- 
tion with a view to securing the best results from every undertaking, 
and helping to direct all the forces at work along lines of the most 
wholesome and substantial progress and development. He is very 
public-spirited and enterprising with reference to the improvement of 
the region in which he lives, and conducts his business and spares no 
effort possible on his part to advance it as rapidly as the circumstances 
allow. 

On June 29, 1892, Mr. Ellis was united in marriage with Miss 
Hortie J. Seatt, a native of Chariton county. They have one child, 
their son James Ellis, Jr. The parents are reckoned among the leading 
people of the city and county of their home and looked upon as potent 
forces for good in every phase of the life of the residents of this part 
of the state. They are modest and unostentatious in their demeanor, 
but they discharge their duties to their community faithfully and fur- 
nish excellent examples of estimable citizenship, which are well appre- 
ciated by the people among whom they live and labor to such good 
purpose. 



WILLIAM N. WHEELER 

This leading business man and influential citizen of Marceline, 
who is one of the pioneers in the real estate business in this locality, is 
not a native of Linn county, but has been a resident of it from the 
time when he was but two years old. From the soil of Bueklin township 
he has drawn his stature and his strength. In its district schools he 
secured his education. His social habits were acquired in association 
with its people, and his business enterprise has been employed among 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 493 

them greatly to tlieir advantage as well as to his own. He is therefore 
practically a product of this county, although his life actually began 
in Chariton county on December 7, 1862. Two years later his parents 
moved their family to Bucklin township, and he has never known any 
other home. 

Mr. Wheeler is a son of Judge Robert J. and Martha Ann (Brooks) 
"Wheeler, the former born in Prince Edward county, Virginia, on 
March 30, 1829. The father was an early arrival in Chariton county, 
Missouri, being brought there by his parents when he was only two 
years old. He was a prosperous farmer in Chariton county, and as such 
accumulated a good estate. In 1864 he moved to Bucklin, and for many 
years thereafter was actively engaged in merchandising. He first dealt 
in leaf tobacco, and after selling his business in this line of trade, be- 
came a general merchant, and also owned and operated a lumber yard, 
and a flouring, saw and carding mill. For three years after his arrival 
at Bucklin he was the agent for the American Express Company at 
that place. 

During the Civil War, owing to his neutrality in the great sec- 
tional conflict, he suffered severely from the depredations of both the 
Union and the Confederate soldiers, and because of the unsettled con- 
dition of the country during the strife and for some years afterward, 
he lost heavily through bad and absconding debtors. His establish- 
ment was also twice destroyed by fire, and he had no insurance to 
cover the loss. Yet, notwithstanding these reverses and business hard- 
ships, he became a wealthy man, at one time owning valuable land in 
Linn, Chariton, Macon and Sullivan .counties in this state and some in 
Kansas. 

For a time he was one of the judges of the county court, and was 
always an enterprising, public spirited and progressive citizen, ear- 
nestly and actively interested in the growth and development of his 
township and county, and doing his full share to promote their advance- 
ment. He belonged to the Methodist Episcopal church, and for many 
years was a member of the Masonic order. His religious usefulness 
and generosity were not, however, limited to his own sect, for he aided 
liberally in supporting all denominations and charities of every kind. 
Linn county has known no better citizen, and its people have held none 
in higher esteem throughout its history. 

William N. Wheeler may properly be said to have inherited the 
mercantile instinct, and to have cultivated his natural gift for it by 
force of habit from his childhood. For he was constantly in the atmos- 
phere of trade while growing to manhood and attending school. He 



494 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

began business for himself in association with A. J. Stone, conducting 
a general store at Bucklin. The partnership lasted eighteen months, 
and after that Mr. Wheeler was in business alone for four years at 
the same place. 

In 1888 he moved to Marceline and started the Bank of Marceline, 
which he conducted for three years, at the same time carrying on a 
flourishing real estate business, in which he is still actively and exten- 
sively engaged. In this line of mercantile operations he is in the front 
rank in this part of the state, and deserves to be. He is wise to his 
business and all its requirements, and he conducts it on a high plane of 
integrity, with great enterprise and breadth of view, and with an eye 
always to the substantial and enduring welfare of the region in which 
he operates. He is also, at this time (1912) agent for the Maxwell 
automobile in Marceline. 

On February 17, 1885, Mr. Wheeler was united in marriage with 
Miss Stella Price, the daughter of James and Mary A. Price, esteemed 
residents of Chariton county, Missouri. One child has been born of 
the union, a daughter named Esther B. The head of the house has 
long been active in local public affairs as a Democrat, and has ren- 
dered his party excellent service in its campaigns for a long time. He 
has also given his home city good service as one of its leading men, 
and as a city councilman for a period of eighteen years. He came to 
Marceline in the infancy of the city and has been one of the potential 
forces that have made it what it is. He is a fine representative of its 
best and most elevated citizenship, and is esteemed by the people of 
the whole county as one of their wisest and most progressive business 
men, most hightoned and upright gentlemen and most serviceable 
agencies for promoting the general welfare of all. 



EDMUND D. STANDLY, M. D. 

Born and reared on a farm, and acquiring strength and flexibility 
of body and resoluteness and self-reliance of spirit by participation in 
its useful but exacting labors; laying the foundation of his academic 
education in the district schools, and completing it in a good college in 
which practical instruction leading to serviceable ends is the rule and 
specialty instead of the frills and furbelows of mental culture; and 
then thoroughly trained in both the theory and the practical work of 
his profession at a leading medical college and in hospital service. Dr. 
Edmund D. Standly of Brookfield entered upon his life work well pre- 



HISTORY OF LIXX COUNTY 495 

pared for its duties, and in his career since starting in it, he has demon- 
strated that the time he passed in preparation was well and wisely 
employed. 

Dr. Standly was born in Coles county, Illinois, on January 28, 
1872, and is a son of William S. and Phama J. (Dawson) Standly, 
who were farmers in that county. The father was a brother of Dr. 
Zachary T. Standly, in a sketch of whom to be found in this volume 
a brief resume of the history" of the family will be found. Both parents 
of Dr. Edmund D. Standly are dead and he is the only one of their 
children now living. He attended the district schools in his native 
county and completed his academic training in the college at Westfield, 
county of Clark, from which he was graduated in the summer of 1894. 

In the autumn of the same year he began the study of medicine 
in University Medical College in Kansas City, Missouri, and from that 
institution he was graduated with the degree of M. D. in 1897. He 
then passed one year and a half as interne in the general hospital in 
the same city, and near the close of 1898 located in Linneus and began 
the general practice of his profession, remaining in that citj^ until 
November, 1909. He then spent three months more in hospital work 
in Kansas City, and in February, 1910, came to Brookfield and formed 
a partnership with his cousin. Dr. Catherine Standly under the firm 
name of Standly & Standly. 

The doctor is now practicing alone, and gives attention to all 
departments of work in the line of his profession. He has been very 
successful in his practice, being recognized by his professional brothers 
and the general public as a wise, judicious and skillful practitioner, 
and making every effort to keep on deserving in full measure the 
reputation he enjoys. To this end he studies diligently the best litera- 
ture on medical science and takes an active part in the proceedings of 
the Linn county and Missouri State Medical Societies, to both of which 
he belongs. 

On May 28, 1901, Dr. Standly was united in marriage with Miss 
Ida M. Williams of Linneus, and since then has maintained an attrac- 
tive home in the city of his residence, making it a center of social cul- 
ture and genuine but unostentatious hospitality. He has taken a very 
active and helpful part in the public affairs of Linn county, serving- 
four years as coimty physician and seven as a member of the pension 
board. He has also been earnest and serviceable in his support of all 
undertakings designed to promote the progress and improvement of the 
county and the enduring welfare of its residents. 

Fraternally Dr. Standly is connected with the Independent Order 



496 HISTOEY OF LINX COUKTY 

of Odd Fellows and the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks, 
Masonic order, 32 degree YorkRite and Shrine. Socially he moves in the 
highest circles and is an ornament to them. Professionally he is in 
the front rank in this part of the state, and in citizenship he is ele- 
vated, public spirited and attentive to every duty, giving all public 
questions discriminating examination, and acting on all with unalloyed 
consideration for the general welfare. Throughout the county he is 
highly esteemed. 



DR. THOMAS P. FORE 

Having been engaged in an active and exacting general practice 
of his profession, with special attention to affections of the nose, ears, 
eyes and throat, and having also taken an energetic part in the affairs 
of his township and county during the last seventeen years. Dr. Thomas 
P. Fore of Brookfield has endeared himself to the people of this por- 
tion of the state by the great services he has rendered them. They 
have found him highly capable in his professional work, with a mas- 
tery of both the theory and the practice of the science of medicine, 
and great skill and excellent judgment in the application of his knowl- 
edge. They have found him also upright, progressive and judicious 
in the exercise of his citizenship, with a warm practical interest in 
the welfare of his locality, and highly commendable energy in giving 
it expression in work of value. They therefore have many reasons for 
holding him in high esteem, and they do in all parts of the county. 

Dr. Fore was born on July 3, 1871, on a farm northeast of Linneus 
in this county. His parents, Peter T. and Mildred E. (Brown) Fore, 
moved to this locality from Howard county more than forty years ago. 
The father's parents were born, reared and married in Virginia, and 
came to Missouri early in their married life. They made the journey 
from the Old Dominion overland in a wagon, and found it long and 
tedious, with danger from various sources at numerous places along 
the route, and privations and burdensome conditions in every mile. It 
was while making this journey that the doctor's father was born, so 
the state and place of his nativity would be difficult to determine but 
the year of his birth was 1833. 

The family located in Ploward county and remained there, the 
parents passing the rest of their lives in that county. There the son 
grew to manhood, obtained a common school education and acquired 
a knowledge of farming, which he made his occupation through life. 
He was married, too, in that county, but soon afterward located in 



HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 497 

Linn county, and here he has passed all the subsequent years of his 
life, doing general farming, raising some live stock, and performing 
his duty to the people as a worthy, estimable and useful man in all the 
relations and requirements of upright and progressive citizenship and 
devoted to the general weal of his community. 

Dr. Thomas P. Fore began his academic education in the district 
schools and completed it at the high school in Linneus. He began the 
study of medicine in the office and under the instruction of Dr. A. J. 
Berry of Purdin. In 1891 and 1892 he attended the medical depart- 
ment of the University of Louisville, Kentucky, and in 1892 and 1893 
Barnes Medical College in St. Louis, Missouri, from which he was 
graduated with the degree of M. D. in 1893. He located at Lemonville, 
Putnam county, and began his practice there immediately after his 
graduation. 

In 1894 he came to Brookfield and purchased the practice and good 
will of Dr. B. B. Putman, and here has lived ever since, giving his 
attention without reservation to his patients, who have increased in 
number from year to year as his skill has grown and become more 
widely known. But he has not devoted himself wholly to the general 
calls on his faculties and professional attainments. Eealizing at an 
early period in his work that there was need of special knowledge for 
the relief of many of his cases, he took a post graduate course on dis- 
eases and treatment of the eyes, ears, nose and throat, and he has since 
made a specialty of that branch of the practice. His post graduate 
course of instruction was pursued at the St. Louis Medical College, and 
was of decided advantage to him, as it has been of great benefit to the 
people of this county. 

Dr. Fore has been studious of his profession in a general way also, 
em.ploying all means at his command to keep abreast with its progress 
and himself informed as to all its continuous discoveries of value and 
its advances in every way. He is an active member of the Linn county 
and the Missouri State Medical societies, and an industrious and 
reflective reader of the best literature bearing on his work, giving 
close attention to everything that is revealed in the science of medicine 
and all that is taught or suggested with reference to improvements in 
practice. 

On February 11, 1896, he was married to Miss Nellie E. Rhoades, 
a daughter of John and Amanda Ehoades, respected and valued resi- 
dents of Brookfield, Missouri. Mrs. Fore died on July 30, 1911, and 
her untimely demise is still a source of universal sorrow throughout 
the city and township in which she lived. For she was warmly 



498 HISTOEY OF LIXN COUNTY 

esteemed as an excellent woman, and a forceful agency in the social, 
intellectual and religious life of the community. There were no chil- 
dren born of her union with the doctor. 

In fraternal life Dr. Fore is connected with the Order of Odd Fel- 
lows and the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks. Politically, 
while he is not an active partisan, and has never sought an office of 
any kind, he believes firmly in the principles of the Democratic party 
and supports them loyally. He sees in them the promise and in their 
supremacy the fulfillment of the highest and most enduring good to 
his county, state and country, but he is not intolerant to the views and 
opinions of other men. He is an excellent citizen and the county holds 
him in cordial regard as such. 



DR. JOHN S. EVANS 

Although born in Denbigshire, Wales, Dr. John S. Evans of Brook- 
field has been a resident of Linn county, Missouri, for about thirty 
years and has practiced his profession here for a period of about 
twenty-one years. During that period his services to the residents of 
the county have been so signal and extensive that he has endeared him- 
self to the people as much as he ever could have done if he were native 
among them. He has also become so thorough in his sympathy with 
their aspirations and purposes and so loyal and devoted to their insti- 
tutions, that he is, for all practical purposes, as much an American as 
any of them. 

Dr. Evans' life began on February 27, 1865, and he is a son of 
Rev. Ebenezer and Mary A. (Jones) Evans, both Welsh by nativity 
and long descent. The father was a Presbyterian clergyman, and died 
in his native land when his son was about eleven years of age, leaving 
his widow and three children, the other two being daughters, to deeply 
mourn their early bereavement. The mother accepted the duty of 
rearing her offspring thus thrust upon her, with the resignation of a 
sturdy Christian woman and the fortitude and self-reliance of a Eoman 
matron, and she performed her duty faithfully to the full extent of 
her powers. 

The doctor began his academic education and also his professional 
training in the land of his birth, but his studies in both were inter- 
rupted when he was fifteen by an event of the greatest moment in his 
life, as it seemed to him then and has since proved to be. When he 



HISTORY OF LIXN COUXTY 499 

was at that age, that is, in 1880, the family emigrated to this country, 
and on their arrival came at once to Missouri and located in Macon 
county. The doctor soon afterward came to Brookfield and accepted 
employment as a bookkeeper, and while performing his duties as such 
attended the Brookfield Academy, which was then conducted by Dr. 
Findley. 

He completed his course of instruction at the academy in June, 
1884 and then determined to continue his medical studies, which, how- 
ever, he had not wholly neglected in the meantime. In 1887 he entered 
the St. Louis Medical College, and later matriculated at the Missouri 
Medical College of St. Louis, Missouri, from which institution he was 
graduated in 1890 with the degree of M. D. 

He immediately returned to Brookfield, and located here to take 
up the duties of his chosen profession and he has been kept busy with 
an extensive and very exacting practice ever since. He has devoted 
himself especially to surgery and grown eminent in that department 
of the medical science. He is called for many miles distant on critical 
cases requiring the highest skill and attention, and is very successful 
in treating them. 

Always eager to get information, and at all times equally as 
willing to impart it, Dr. Evans has availed himself of all opportuni- 
ties for the former and cheerfully responded to all calls for the latter. 
He is a diligent student of the best literature of his profession, espe- 
cially all that bears on his favored lines of practice. 

In the public affairs of his home city and county the doctor has 
always taken an earnest interest and an active part. He has long 
been a member of the school board, and from the dawn of his manhood 
has been a zealous worker for the progress and improvement of the 
section in which he lives. 

Dr. Evans was married on March 25, 1891, to Miss Margaret J. 
Shaw, the daughter of a Presbyterian clergyman and a native of this 
state. They have two sons and a daughter, Paul, Lane and Alice G. 
The father is a member of the Presbyterian church and attentive to 
its claims upon him, both with reference to the good work it under- 
takes, in which he is always a helpful force, and in the exemplifica- 
tion of its teachings in his daily life and his relations and dealings with 
fellow men. Fraternally he is connected with the Masonic order, and 
in that, too, he takes a serviceable interest, regarding it as a force of 
considerable potency for the betterment and social enjoyment of 
mankind. 



500 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

ISAAC NEWTON WILBER 

We have the sanction of Holy Writ for the declaration that a 
prophet is not without honor save in his own country. But, however 
this may be with prophets, it is not always true of men who devote 
their best faculties and long years of their time to the service of great 
corporations and other lines of business of commanding importance. 
This was testified in a glowing manner in the case of Isaac Newton 
AVilber on Saturday afternoon, December 28, 1907, when the citizens of 
Hannibal, Missouri, and the railroad men connected with the Burling- 
ton Railroad in that city assembled in the court house to show their 
appreciation of Mr. Wilber's fifty years of zealous and effective work 
for that system of railroading. 

On this occasion, which was just before Mr. Wilber's retirement 
from the service of the road, all honors to a private citizen, who had 
nothing to recommend him but his ability and fidelity to duty in several 
trying and arduous capacities, were outdone by the testimonial given 
Mr. Wilber. Music, flowers, song and oratory were features of the 
meeting, and several men high in the councils of the road paid him 
glowing tributes for his long and faithful and at all times efficient 
service, and the general verdict was '* Well done, good and faithful man, 
in a continuous round of duty for fifty years." 

Mr. Wilber was born in Dutchess county. New York, on February 
24, 1836, and was reared to the age of eighteen on a farm. He received 
a good common school education, and in November, 1854, when he was 
eighteen, moved with his parents and the rest of the family to Moline, 
Illinois. He remained at Moline, working in a saw mill, until Novem- 
ber, 1857, then changed his residence to Missouri and his occupation to 
work for the Hannibal & St. Joseph Railroad, beginning his engagement 
on the road December 1, 1857. His first work was making ties in a saw 
mill which the company leased in Kansas. 

This occupied him until the fall of 1858, when he went to the end 
of the track then built and delivered ties and rails to track layers until 
February 13, 1859, when the track was finished. From that time until 
October, 1860, he worked as a laborer with a gang of carpenters erect- 
ing depots and other necessary structures on the line of the road. He 
next secured a position as brakeman and continued to serve the com- 
pany in that capacity until February, 1862, at which time he became 
fireman on one of the locomotives. He served as fireman until May, 
1863, w^ien he was promoted to the position of engineer. 

He held this position until September 1, 1868, when he was made 



HISTOEY OF LIXN COUXTY 501 

roundhouse foreman in Hannibal, remaining as such until September 1, 
1877, and then again went on the road as engineer. On October 1, 
1884, he was again made foreman of the roundhouse in Hannibal and 
remained in charge of it until May 1, 1887. At that time he was sent 
to Brookfield as division master mechanic, which position he filled until 
the death of N. J. Paradise, in January, 1896, when he was made master 
mechanic with headquarters at Hannibal, and he continued to serve 
the road in this capacity until his retirement on January 1, 1908. 

Mr. Wilber is a son of George W. and Mary A. (Stewart) Wilber, 
who were also natives of the state of New York. The father was a 
farmer, but after removing his family to Moline, Illinois, in 1854, worked 
for a lumber company in connection with his farming until the death 
of the mother in 1876. He then changed his residence to Hannibal 
and passed the remainder of his life, and where he died on January 24, 
1890, at the advanced age of seventy-eight years. 

Nine children, five sons and four daughters, were born in the family, 
and three of the sons and two of the daughters are still living. Two 
of the sons reside in Brookfield. One son, Jacob E. Wilber, served in 
the One Hundred and Nineteenth Volunteer Infantry three years during 
the Civil War. He was in the army commanded by General Sherman, 
and saw a great deal of active service during the momentous and 
sanguinary conflict. He is now an engineer on the Burlington rail- 
road. The grandfather of these children was Jacob Wilber. He died 
in the state of New York. 

In the early days, when Mr. Wilber was firing on a locomotive, all 
the engines were known by names. His berth was on the Old Hanni- 
bal, No. 2. During the Civil War he also saw service in defense of 
the Union, enlisting in a company of the Home Guard under a ninety 
days' call. There was considerable turbulence in his neighborhood 
at the time, and he was called into active hostilities on more than one 
occasion, especially while doing guard duty on the river front in 
Hannibal. 

Mr. Wilber was married on April 7, 1861, in Hannibal, to Miss 
Levina Kain, a native of Pennsylvania. They have seven children: 
Mary L., who is now Mrs. M. A. Cooley; Henrietta, who is the wife 
of George Chapman; George S., who is now master mechanic of the 
St. Joe division of the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy; Jacob E., who 
is a machinist for the Iron Mountain Railroad; Isaac N., Jr., who is a 
machinist for the Denver & Rio Grande Railroad at Grand Junction, 
Colorado; Sarah E., who is the wife of Charles Betebenner, of Han- 



502 HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 

nibal; and Walter A., who is also a railroad man, but is living at 
home. 

Mr. Wilber has been a member of the Masonic Order since 1865 
and has always taken a great interest in the fraternity in general and 
his lodge in particular. He is now the only surviving member of the 
old guard of railroad men in Missouri and he is beloved as few men 
in the state have ever been. His character and services were well 
epitomized by Hon. George A. Mahan in an eloquent address delivered 
by that gentleman at the testimonial given Mr. Wilber at the time of 
his retirement from active work for the railroad. Mr. Mahan said in 
part: ''What more splendid tribute than the presence of this large 
gathering of the friends and associates of Mr. Wilber could be paid to 
his worth as a man and his good citizenship? The people of Hannibal 
long since learned to love and honor him for those sterling qualities 
which make the true man. The life of this master mechanic has been 
one of construction and not destruction. He builded always for the 
better interest of the railroad company, the men who worked under 
him and the city and state in which he lived. To emulate the life and 
follow in the footsteps of Mr. Wilber would surely bring its just reward 
and make us all the best of citizens." 



THOMAS HALLIBURTON 

From the dawn of his manhood Thomas Halliburton has been en- 
gaged in merchandising, and the success he has made of his calling 
shows that whether Nature intended him for it or not, she endowed him 
highly with the necessary qualifications for following it on an elevated 
plane. He is now the leading merchant of Brookfield and has the best 
and most popular general dry goods store in northeastern Missouri, 
as well as one of the most extensively and completely equipped and 
stocked. 

Mr. Halliburton was born at Linneus on September 20, 1851, and 
is a son of Wesley and Armilda (Collins) Halliburton, the former a 
native of Tennessee and the latter of Kentucky. The father was born 
in 1812 and brought by his parents to Huntsville, Eandolph county, 
Missouri, in 1822. He grew to manhood in that county, and there 
studied law and taught school. After his admission to the bar he prac- 
ticed in several counties in northeastern Missouri, being a circuit attor- 
ney, according to the custom of the time. 

About the year 1847 he located at Linneus, and some years after- 




THOMAS HALLIBURTON 



HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 503 

wards was made receiver of the government land office at Milan, Sulli- 
van county, by President Pierce. During his tenure of this office he 
handled a great deal of money, which periodically he carried to St. 
Louis on horseback. He resumed his residence in Linneus in 1860, and 
in 1861 moved to Brunswick, Chariton county, where he lived until 
after the close of the Civil war. He was one of the first promoters of 
the Hannibal & St. Joseph Railroad and one of its first directors. When 
he moved from Brunswick he took up his residence in St. Louis county, 
but three years later settled on his farm near Milan, where he died in 
June, 1890. His second wife, the mother of his son Thomas, died 
in 1870. 

Mr, Halliburton, the elder, was a member of the constitutional con- 
vention of 1872 and afterward served in the state senate. He was mar- 
ried three times, his first wife having been a Miss Holemon, who bore 
him three children, one of whom, a son, is living and has his home in 
Milan. She died in Macon county. The second marriage was with the 
mother of Thomas Halliburton and resulted in the birth of ten chil- 
dren, six of whom are living. The third wife, whose maiden name was 
Judith Owens, is living and resides in Carthage, Mo. 

The husband was a pronounced Democrat and a leader of his party 
in the state. But he was opposed to its secession from the Union and 
a potent factor in preventing that disaster. In fraternal life he was 
an Odd Fellow and in religious affiliation a Baptist. His father, Am- 
brose Halliburton, was born in Tennessee and was a farmer. He was a 
soldier in the War of 1812, and as a reward of his patriotism was given 
a grant of land by the government, as were his five brothers, who were 
also soldiers in that war. He located his grant in what is now Linn 
county, and became a pioneer of Randolph county in 1822, and there 
passed the remainder of his days. 

Thomas Halliburton was reared and educated in Linneus. In 1872 
he started in business in that city as a general merchant, opening a fine 
store, which he conducted for a period of fifteen years. In 1887 he 
moved to Brookfield, and since then has been at the head of the impos- 
ing and popular dry goods emporium which has made him known 
throughout the state, and a man of special prominence and influence in 
this county. He is also a stockholder in and one of the directors of 
the Brownlee Bank, and has been president of the Brookfield Commer- 
cial Club two years. 

Mr. Halliburton was married at Linneus on September 1, 1874, to 
Miss Mollie Russell, a daughter of David and Deborah A. (Trumbo) 
Russell. Three sons have blessed the union and brightened the home- 



504 HISTORY OF LI^s.V COU^^TY 

stead : Fred R., who is connected with his father in business ; Russell 
B., who is a commercial tourist, and James C, who is president of the 
Halliburton Company of Brookfield. The father is a member of the 
Order of Elks, the Order of Odd Fellows and the Woodmen of the 
World. He is one of the leading men and merchants of this part of 
the state, and is most highly esteemed wherever he is known. 

He began his mercantile enterprise when he was just twenty-one 
and on a small scale. But he had great aptitude for the business and 
he increased his qualifications by close and intelligent study of his 
undertaking in all its bearings, expanding his operations as he had 
opportunity and means, and from the beginning building as if he knew 
the magnitude he could reach and the necessity for his making every 
step of the progress sound and enduring. He has contributed very 
largely and substantially to the commercial greatness and power of 
Brookfield, and helped to put many forces in motion for its growth and 
advancement. And by his steady, upright and successful course, his 
ceaseless enterprise, his originality and resourcefulness and his adop- 
tion of every worthy new idea, he has made himself one of the most 
influential and representative business men in the West. He is also 
one of Linn county's best and most useful citizens in many other ways. 



WILLIAM J. TUITE 

(Deceased) 

By the death of the late William J. Tuite on April 4, 1911, the city 
of Brookfield lost a valued citizen and one of its honored pioneers. He 
arrived at the city in 1866, just six years after it was laid out, and 
lived there until his death. He was very helpful in the work of laying 
its foundations, and to the end of his life took a warm and energetic 
interest in its growth, development and improvement. He had pro- 
gressive ideas and considerable versatility in efforts to realize them, 
and his public spirit was always equal to any demand made on it. 

Mr. Tuite was a native of Ireland, born in the city of Dublin on 
May 12, 1824. His parents, Richard and Eliza (Baguell) Tuite, were 
also natives of that .country, but moved to the province of Ontario, 
Canada, in its pioneer days and during the childhood of their son Wil- 
liam, and there they passed the remainder of their days, dying at 
advanced ages and after long records of usefulness and upright living. 

Their son William grew to manhood in Ontario and obtained a lim- 
ited education in the district schools of that province. After leaving 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 505 

school he learned the trade of a stonemason, and soon after completing 
his apprenticeship moved to New York state. There he was united 
in marriage with Miss Gussie Thomas, and by this union became the 
father of two daughters, one of whom is living, Mrs. Eveline Quinn, 
who is a resident of this county. Her mother died in Hampton, Wash- 
ington county, N. Y., on March 15, 1865, and on May 30, 1886, the father 
contracted a second marriage, being united on this occasion with Miss 
Nancy M. Dodge, a native of the state of New York, and the daughter 
of Otis Dodge, who came to Brookfield in 1868. The second Mrs. Tuite 
is still living and is one of the most respected and estimable matrons of 
Brookfield. 

Mr. Tuite was a Republican in his political faith and allegiance, 
but not an active partisan and never sought or desired a political office 
of any kind. He was content to give his attention to his own affairs 
and leave the administration of those of the city and county to persons 
who desired the honor of attending to it. Fraternally he was con- 
nected with the Order of Odd Fellows, and in religious faith adhered 
to the teachings of the Baptist church, and in his daily life he exemj^li- 
fied them and those of his lodge on all occasions and in all his dealings. 

Not far from the age of ninety years when he died, for a number of 
years he lived retired from all active work, but he never lost interest 
in the welfare of Brookfield and Linn county, and passed his declining 
period of earthly existence revered as a pioneer and patriarch of the 
city for whom all its people had high respect as a man of worth and 
fidelity to duty at all times, an example to the whole community by rea- 
son of his integrity of character, his usefulness as a citizen and his 
abiding straightforwardness as a man. When he passed away in the 
fullness of years and of public esteem, all classes of the residents of 
Brookfield testified to his genuine merit in forceful and impressive 
wavs. 



JAMES CARPENTER 

Born in County Kent, England, and endowed by nature with many 
of the sturdy and sterling qualities which have made the ''bright 
little, tight little isle ' ' the commanding commercial and naval power of 
the world, James Carpenter, the pioneer grocer of Brookfield, has 
proven himself to be a valuable addition to the enterprise, progressive- 
ness and business ability which characterize American manhood in its 
best development, and has risen to the first rank in business circles and 



506 HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 

the general esteem of the people in Linn county, where he has lived 
since 1869. 

Mr. Carpenter's life began on January 3, 1848, and he is a son 
of James and Jane (Cornwell) Carpenter, both of the same nativity 
as himself. The father was a carpenter by trade as well as by name, 
and worked industriously at his craft for years in his native land. 
Seeking to better his condition in life, he came to the United States to 
found a new home for his family, which he left in England. His hopes 
were not realized here, as he died soon after his arrival in the country. 

His son James was but five years old when his mother brought him 
and his two brothers to this country and located in Waterville, New 
York. In that city James grew to manhood and obtained his education 
in the district schools. After leaving school he farmed in the neigh- 
borhood of Waterville, Oneida county. New York, until 1869, then 
came to Missouri, located in Linn county and in company with his 
brother George F. bought a tract of 160 acres of wild land four and 
one-half miles southwest of Bucklin. 

In company with his uncle, Stephen Sharp, he improved that land 
and lived on it sixteen years, making it over into a valuable and pro- 
ductive farm, and prospering in the operation of it. In 1885 he changed 
his residence to Brookfield and started the grocery business in which 
he is still engaged in that city. His mother died in Brookfield in 1899, 
and the surviving members of the family are Mr. Carpenter, his brother 
Cornwell, who lives in the state of New York, and their sister, Mrs. 
Jennie Tooey, whose home is in Lincoln, Nebraska. 

Mr. Carpenter was married in 1881 to Miss Laura F. Cody, a 
daughter of Michael Cody, who located in Linn county in 1870. Four 
children have been born of the union, three sons and one daughter, all 
of whom are living. The sons are Arthur C, George P. and J. Encell, 
all of whom are associated with their father in the grocery business. 
The daughter is Laura W., who is still living at home with her parents. 
The grocery firm trades under the name and style of James Carpenter 
Sons. 

In the public affairs of the city and county of his home Mr. Car- 
penter has taken a cordial and helpful interest. He has served on the 
school board for fifteen years and been twice a member of the city 
council of Brookfield. In fraternal relations he is connected with the 
Woodmen of th^ World and the Knights and Ladies of Security, and 
his religious affiliation is with the Christian church, in which he is one 
of the elders of the congregation to which he belongs. 

The people of Brookfield and Linn county have found him upright 



HISTOKY OF LINN COUNTY 507 

and square in his dealings and worthy of their high regard in every 
way. In business, in public office and in private life he has shown him- 
self true to every duty, zealous for the welfare of his community, active 
in helping to promote every form of public improvement and a fine 
type of manhood from every point of view. They esteem him fully in 
accordance with his demonstrated worth and the high character of his 
citizenship. 



MARVIN C. POST 

The worthy son of a distinguished father, and his capable and 
enterprising successor as the owner and manager of the largest hard- 
ware business in Linn county, Marvin C. Post of Brookfield is one of 
the most respected and influential men in this part of Missouri. From 
his boyhood he has shown admirable traits of character and business 
ability, and ever since the dawn of his manhood he has taken an ear- 
nest, practical interest in the welfare and improvement of the city and 
county of his home. He has therefore fully justified the confidence and 
esteem the people bestow upon him, both in reference to his business 
acumen and the uprightness and usefulness of his life in other respects. 
Mr. Post was born in Fond du Lac, Wisconsin, in March, 1864, and 
when he was but little over one year old his parents, Jerome C. and 
Julia P. (Hollister) Post, moved to Brookfield. A sketch of their lives 
will be found in this volume. The son grew to manhood in Brookfield 
and obtained his education in its public schools. At an early age he 
became associated with his father in business, and later opened a store 
of his own on the south side of the city. This was in 1891, and he con- 
ducted this store for about ten years. In 1901, having bought his 
father's business some years before, he opened his present establish- 
ment, conducting the two as separate stores until 1904, when he con- 
solidated them, and has carried them on as one ever since. 

In 1908 he was elected a member of the county court, serving one 
term of two years. He is a Demo.crat in political relations, but while 
he is always eager for the success of his party, he is not an active 
partisan, and seldom takes any part in political contests. Fraternally 
he belongs to the Modern Woodmen of America and th'e Benevolent and 
Protective Order of Elks, and in religion he is a Christian Scientist. 

Mr. Post was married on June 20, 1893, to Miss Sallie C. Collins, a 
native of the state of Delaware. They have one child, their daughter 
Margaret H., who still abides with them in the family home and is 
one of its greatest attractions. She is prominent in the social life of the 



508 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

city and county and active in all good works for their advancement, 
according to lier opportunities, omitting no effort on her part that will 
aid in bringing about good results. 

Mr, Post's business is extensive and exacting, and he gives it his 
close and careful attention. But he does not allow it to absorb him to 
the exclusion of his social duties to the community or any of the proper 
claims of citizenship. He is genial and companionable and enjoys a 
strong and wide- spread popularity, being known and held in high 
regard in all parts of Linn county and in many parts of those adjacent 
to it. Northeastern Missouri has no better citizen, and the people 
cheerfully accord him the distinction of being one of the best. But he 
is modest in reference to his merit and claims no such distinction, or 
any other beyond those of dealing squarely with everybody in his busi- 
ness and living correctly in all the affairs of life. 



B. J. PATRICK 



Whatever may be the interest of other men in the progi^ess and 
prosperity of Linn county, and whatever their claims to the regard and 
esteem of its people, there is an element in the case of B. J. Patrick, a 
prominent contractor and builder of Brookfield, which raises his above 
those of the most of them, if not of them all. His own work in the 
county would give him a deep and abiding interest in it and a strong 
claim on the good will of its people. But the history of some of his kin 
in connection with its affairs is of a nature to make him almost rever- 
ence it. This history also gives him a strong claim on the respect of the 
people, and the claim is strengthened by his own high character, per- 
sonal worth and usefulness as a man and a citizen of public spirit and 
progressiveness. 

Two of Mr. Patrick's grand aunts were the first white women who 
made their homes within the present limits of the county. The chain 
that connects him with its soil, therefore, runs back unbroken to the 
time when it was first turned by the white man's plow and yielded its 
first fruits to the white man's systematic husbandry, although he is 
not himself a native of the county. He was born in Howard county, 
Missouri, on January 27, 1868, and is a son of William H. and Sarah 
E. (Jones) Patrick, the former also a native of Howard county, and the 
latter of Richmond, Virginia. 

The father was a farmer and never followed any other pursuit. 
He was born on May 6, 1845, and died at Marceline, this county, on 



HISTORY OF LIXX COUNTY 509 

March 31, 1900. The mother is still living and resides in Brookfield. 
They were married at Fayette, Missouri, and had two sons and six 
daughters, five of whom are living, the two sons and three of the daugh- 
ters. The father served in Company A, Ninth Missouri Cavalry, in the 
Union army, during three and a half years of the Civil War. He was 
engaged mostly in scout duty, but took part in the battle of Kirksville. 

His father, Larkin C. Patrick, was born in Breathitt county, Ken- 
tucky, in 1814, on October 6, and was brought by his parents to this 
state before he was a year old. He passed his whole subsequent life 
in Howard county, and died at the age of seventy-five on the farm in 
that county entered from the government by his grandfather. Larkin 
was a son of Luke Patrick, also a native of Kentucky, a farmer who 
brought his familj^ to Howard county, this state in 1815, and was a 
son-in-law of George Cason who accompanied Daniel Boone from Ken- 
tucky to Howard county. 

Luke Patrick was a farmer, but did not depend on this occupation 
wholly for his livelihood and provision for his family. The returns 
from farming in Missouri at that early day were meager, but even if 
they had been abundant they would not have satisfied him. For lie 
was of an adventurous nature, a veritable frontiersman of the most 
pronounced type, and became a hunter and trapper and Indian fighter 
of considerable local renown. It was his custom to come to what is now 
Linn county every fall on hunting expeditions, and in the neighbor- 
hood of the present city of Linneus to pursue the pleasures and profits 
of the chase. 

He served in the Indian wars of the period, was a famous teller of 
stories of adventure in the wilds and one of the most interesting char- 
acters in this part of the world in his day. In 1829 he killed on Elk 
creek the largest elk ever seen alive and wild in Linn county, and the 
creek received its name from this incident. He was well pleased with 
this region and recommended it to his friends who wished to plant their 
feet farther in the wilderness, and so his two daughters, Mrs. George 
M. Pendleton and Mrs. Joseph Newton, with their husbands, became 
the first white residents of what is now Linn county. 

B. J. Patrick was reared to the age of fifteen in Howard county and 
obtained his education in the district schools. In 1888 he located at 
Marceline, w^here he began his apprenticeship as a carpenter, finishing 
his instruction in the craft in Chicago. In 1901 he moved to Brookfield, 
and here he has made his home ever since, and been engaged in con- 
tracting and building, winning success and rising to prominence in his 
occupation. As a means to the highest standard and best results in 



510 HISTORY OF LI^^^" COUNTY 

his work lie attended the Architectural Institute in St. Louis, from 
which he was graduated in 1896, after a full course of instruction. 

He has built some imposing structures in Brookfield, among them 
the Methodist Episcopal church and some of the best dwelling houses. 
He also drew the plans for the Christian church, and has done a great 
deal of superior work outside of the city. He is a thorough master of 
his trade, a good architect and a workman of excellent judgment. 
Whatever he does in the way of building is well done, no part of it 
ever being slighted, and all redounding to his credit and sustaining the 
high reputation he won early in his career as a builder. 

Mr. Patrick was married on December 19, 1900, to Miss Carrie 
Newton, a daughter of Kenneth A, and Luella (Bowling) Newton, and 
a grand daughter of Joseph Newton, one of the two first white male 
settlers in the county. He is therefore connected by marriage as well 
as by blood with the founders of civilization in this part of the state. 
He and his wife are the parents of one child, their daughter Olive. The 
parents are members of the Christian church and active workers in 
the congregation to which they belong, in which the father has long 
served as an elder and one of the trustees. 

While Mr. Patrick takes no part in political contentions he is 
always interested in the welfare of his city and county, and at all 
times ready to do whatever he can to promote it. He is particularly^ 
active in behalf of public improvements, and intelligent and judicious 
in his efforts to help them along. He is also wisely and judiciously 
zealous in aiding all educational and moral agencies at work in the 
community, manifesting in all his desires and activities the attributes 
of sturdy, upright and progressive and public spirited American 
citizenship. 



WILLIAM JAMES 

As taste and fashion in jewelry is always changing, the man who 
handles it must be bright and attentive to the requirements if he wishes 
to succeed. He ought also to be a skillful workman, familiar with all 
the details of his craft and ready to supply all demands in the best 
style of workmanship. William James, who conducts the largest, most 
elaborate and most artistic jewelry store in the city of Brookfield, is well 
up in all the requirements of his business, and he carries it on in a 
manner that greatly pleases the people and is highly creditable to 
himself. 

Mr. James was born in the city of Sydney, Australia, on April 13, 



HISTORY OF LIXN COUNTY 511 

1866, but he was not allowed to remain in his native place long enough 
to appreciate its great commercial advantages, its fine and ample har- 
bor, its superb situation, its magnificent buildings and the rich scenery 
of sparkling bays, emerald islands and luxuriant vegetation which sur- 
rounds it. 

His parents, Isaac and Elizabeth (Williams) James, were migra- 
tory persons, and soon after the birth of the son returned to Wales, 
their native land, and in 1869, when he was but three years old, came 
to the United States and located in Missouri. The father was a gold 
miner, and pursued his occupation wherever the field seemed most 
promising and fruitful. He emigrated to New South Wales, Australia, 
and passed all of fourteen years in that country. He also followed 
mining in New Zealand. 

After the family returned to Wales it did not linger long in that 
country, but in 1869, as has been noted, came to the United States and 
found a new home at New Cambria, where it was the intention to make 
a short visit to friends and then move on to California. But the father 
was so well pleased with Macon county in this state that he determined 
to remain and bought a farm there. In that county the parents passed 
the rest of their lives, the father dying on his farm in 1877, and the 
mother in 1904, having survived her husband twenty- seven years. He 
had succeeded well in his mining operations in Australia, where he was 
a pioneer in the gold fields, and was well fixed financially when he took 
up his residence in Missouri. He and his wife were the parents of four 
sons and four daughters, all of whom are living but one of the sons. 

William James grew to manhood on the parental homestead in 
Macon county and was educated in the district schools. He was early 
fired with an ambition to make his own way in the world, and in 1889, 
when he was twenty-three years old, came to Brookfield and entered the 
employ of C. P. x\lmroth, a jeweler, with a view to learning the trade 
and proper management of the business. He learned his trade in com- 
pany with J. P. Horker, who is now associated with him in business. 
Mr. Almroth failed in business in 1896, and during the next two years 
Mr. James carried on the operations of the store. He next passed two 
years in the states of Oklahoma and Kansas, and at the end of that time 
returned to Brookfield. 

In 1902 he founded his present business, which has grown to be the 
largest of its kind in Brookfield, and its growth is entirely due to his 
skill as a workman, his excellent judgment in reference to the wares he 
handles, his fine business ability and his studious attention to the wants 
of the communitv in his line. He is always up to the latest turns of the 



512 HISTOKY OF LINN COUNTY 

market iu his stock and knows his business in and out thoroughly, so 
that he is able to buy to the best advantage and give his patrons the 
full benefit of his extensive knowledge. 

Mr. James was married in Macon county, tliis state, on October 8, 
1902, to Miss Martha Evans, the daughter of Thomas 0. and Maria 
(Young) Evans, esteemed residents of that county. Two sons have 
been born of the union, William I. and David T., both of whom are 
attending school in Brookfield. They are bright boys and almost sure 
to make their mark in a highly creditable way in the world when they 
reach maturity. 

The father has taken a great interest in public aiTairs in Brookfield, 
and has won extensive popularity among the residents of the city. He 
was a member of the city council in 1909 and 1910, and in other ways 
has been of service to the city in a commendable manner and to a con- 
siderable extent. He is always interested in public improvements of 
every worthy kind and at all times ready and willing to give practical 
aid in promoting them. He is also prominent in social circles and an 
ornament to those in which he mingles. In religious faith and 
allegiance he is a Presbyterian. 



DR. JAMES B. EURE 

This well known and highly esteemed physician and surgeon of 
Brookfield, who is also one of the leading and influential citizens of 
Linn county, is a native of Nash county. North Carolina, where his life 
began on June 26, 1865, and where his parents, Alfred and Delia 
(Finch) Eure were also native and passed the whole of their lives. The 
father was born there in 1808 and died there in 1872. He was married 
three times, and was the father of eight sons, three of whom were in 
the Confederate army during the Civil War, and five of whom are still 
living. 

His ancestors came to this country from France in colonial times 
and some of them were prominent in the Revolutionary War. They 
fought valiantly for American independence, and when that was se- 
cured they settled down in the country which they had helped to redeem 
from foreign domination and devoted the remainder of their lives, as 
their descendants have done ever since, to the promotion of American 
industrial, intellectual, social and commercial life and power, taking 
place and part in every domain of human effort and making their con- 
tributions to each of great benefit to it and their country. 



HISTOEY OF LIXN COUXTY 513 

Dr. James B. Eure secured liis academic education in liis native 
.county, completing it at the Stanhope and Mt. Pleasant academies 
there. He began the study of medicine in 1894, and was graduated from 
the Barnes Medical College of St. Louis in 1897, having become a resi- 
dent of Missouri in 1893. He taught school for a number of years in 
North Carolina and one year in this state before beginnig work on his 
preparation for his profession, but since his graduation from the med- 
ical colleges he has devoted all his time and energy to professional 
work. 

The doctor began his practice in 1898 in Brookfield, and he has 
been located in that city and engaged in a general practice throughout 
all the subsequent years. He stands high in the profession and in the 
confidence and regard of the people of the county, and his practice has 
grown to very large proportions. He is knowing and skillful, diligent 
and obliging, giving all calls prompt attention and all patients wise and 
judicious treatment, and both on account of his ability and his faith- 
fulness in caring for those who need his services he is widely and justly 
popular as a physician and as a man. 

The organizations in his profession formed and maintained for the 
improvement and enjoyment of its members, have always appealed 
strongly to him as means of valuable assistance to all practitioners, and 
for years he has been active in his membership in several of them. He 
belongs to the Linn County and Missouri State Medical Societies and 
the American Medical Association, and is at this time (1912) president 
of the first named. He has also been studious in the use of the litera- 
ture of his profession and availed himself of additional instruction 
whenever he has had opportunity, pursuing special courses in the Poly- 
clinic School in Chicago in 1905 and Washington University in 1910. 
And in winter of 1912 attended lectures at the Eye & Ear Infirmary of 
New York city. 

In fraternal relations the doctor is connected with the Order of Odd 
Fellows and the Woodmen of the World. His religious affiliation is 
with the Methodist Episcopal Church South, and in this and his lodges 
he takes an earnest interest and an active part in all their work. His 
membership in all is highly valued. He was married in 1896 to Miss 
Alberta Langston of Mississippi county, Missouri. They have had no 
children, but they have adopted their community as an object of their 
greatest interest, care and solicitude, and to its advancement and im- 
provement in every way they devote all the energy they can. Linn 
county has no better citizens and none whom the people hold in higher 
or more deserved esteem. 



514 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

The doctor is now devoting his practice to diseases of eye, ear and 
throat and is located at Poplar Bluff, Missouri, Butler county, where he 
is also interested in farming. 



ROBERT J. BEAUCHAMP 

Having tried his hand at several different lines of mercantile busi- 
ness, life insurance, railroading and farming, Robert J. Beauchamp of 
Brookfield finally found a field of operation suited to his .capacity 
exactly and in accordance with his desires, in real estate transactions. 
He is the head of the real estate firm of Beauchamp & Baker, which he 
founded in 1897, and with which he has ever since been connected. The 
firm handles lands in Texas and all parts of the Southwest generally, 
and conducts an extensive and active business which covers a very 
large extent of territory. 

Mr. Beauchamp is one of the "Blue Hen's Chickens," having been 
born in Dover, the capital of Delaware, on 'July 22, 1861. His parents 
were James H. and Louvisa (Lank) Beauchamp, the former a native 
of Delaware and the latter of Maryland. Gidiah Beauchamp, the grand- 
father of Robert, was a Kentuckian by nativity but located in Delaware 
when he was a young man. His son James H. was a dry goods mer- 
chant in his native state. He moved his family to Brookfield, Missouri, 
in March, 1877, and soon afterward took up his residence on a farm near 
Browning in this county, which he lived on and cultivated until his 
death, which occurred in 1892. The mother died in 1908, having sur- 
vived her husband sixteen years. 

They reared four of their children, three sons and one daughter, 
to maturity, and all of them are still living. They are: Robert J., the 
subject of this brief memoir; James K., a capitalist and real estate mer- 
chant of Kansas City, Missouri. He served eight years on district and 
supreme bench of Oklahoma Territory; Benjamin D., who deals exten- 
sively in real estate from his home in Oklahoma City, and Rosa, who 
is the wife of G. E. Moore of Brookfield. The spirit of the parents is 
reproduced and kept up to date in their offspring, and keeps alive the 
fine examples of elevated American citizenship the families on both 
sides of the house have given to the world for generations. 

Robert J. Beauchamp was sixteen years old when he came with 
his parents to this county in 1877. He grew to manhood and completed 
his education here, attending the public schools and Findlay Academy 



H18T0EY OF LINX COUNTY 5ij 

in Brookfield and also attended Felton College of Felton, Missouri. 
He began his business career as a clerk in a store and afterward en- 
gaged in the life insurance business. From this he turned to the cloth- 
ing trade, to which he devoted two years. At the end of that period he 
moved to Liberal, Kansas, where he engaged in the hardware trade for 
two years. 

He then returned to Brookfield and during the next six years was 
employed in train service on the Burlington Railroad. Quitting rail- 
road work, he engaged in farming for a year, then, in 1897, formed a 
partnership with his brother Benjamin D. which existed until 1904 and 
in 1906 the present firm was formed consisting of our subject and 
Albanes W. Baker for the purpose of conducting a real estate business, 
and in this he is still extensively and profitably engaged. He has made 
a study of his business and is considered one of the best posted and most 
discriminating men in it in this part of the state. His opinion as to 
values and possibilities of improvement is widely sought and always 
has weight and the correctness of his judgment in real estate matters 
is never questioned, but is usually followed by those to whom he gives 
it. 

Mr. Beauchamp's public spirit, his devotion to the general welfare, 
his genuine interest in the city and county of his home and the nature 
of his business all combine to make him forceful and enterprising in 
reference to public improvements and everything that seems likely to 
promote the advancement of his locality. He can always be counted on 
for practical aid in any commendable undertaking for the betterment of 
the community or the advantage of its people, and he is judicious in 
the help he gives. 

He takes an active part in political affairs as a loyal member of the 
Democratic party, but he has no ambition for public office and has never 
had. Fraternally he is a member of the Masonic order, the Order of 
Elks, the Modern Woodmen of America, the Knights of the Maccabees 
and the Brotherhood of Locomotive Firemen. In religious matters he is 
affiliated with the Christian church. To all of these organizations he 
gives such care and attention as good, active and serviceable member- 
ship demands, and in each he is a potent factor for good. 

In October, 1882, he was married to Miss Sallie N. Dunn, a native of 
Randolph county, Missouri. They have one child, their son Frank B., 
who is a student in the State University. All the members of the family 
stand well in the community, in all of whose worthy activities they take 
part, and are regarded as excellent representatives of its citizenship in 



516 HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 

business enterprise, in moral upriglitness, in religions tone and in 
domestic and social life. No residents of Brookfield are more highly 
esteemed or more deserving of high esteem. 

Mr. Beauchamp has served two terms as a member of the school 
board of Brookfield, and is still serving. He also is an extensive holder 
of real estate in Linn county and Oklahoma. 



DR. WILLIS E. SCOTT 

A resident of Brookfield since 1888, and during the whole of his 
residence in the city active in the practice of dentistry, Dr. Willis E. 
Scott has rendered the people of Linn county long-continued and excel- 
lent service in his professional work. He is the oldest practitioner of 
dental surgery in the county in continuous work in the profession and 
one of the most eminent in this part of the state. 

Dr. Scott was born in Livingston county, Missouri, and is a son of 
Thomas F. and Amanda (Stone) Scott, the former a native of Ohio 
and the latter of Missouri. The father was a farmer in his native state 
until 1844, when he came by the river route to Brunswick, in Chariton 
county, then journeyed overland to Livingston county, where he again 
engaged in farming until 1849. Then, when the excitement over the 
discovery of gold in California was at its height, he joined a train of 
men eager to secure a portion of the treasure, and they made the trip 
to the gold fields across the plains with ox teams. 

The train had some difficulties with the Indians, but after its 
arrival at its destination Mr. Scott was fairly successful in his mining 
operations. He was not, however, satisfied with his progress, and went 
to Australia in search of more rapid returns for his labor. Even there 
his love of adventure and quest of fortune was not wholly appeased, and 
he visited some of the rich mining regions of South America. He 
returned to his Missouri home in 1855, and some years later moved to 
Brookfield, where he died in 1910. The mother died in 1893. They 
had two sons and two daughters, all of whom are living. 

Dr. Scott was reared and educated in Livingston county and fol- 
lowed farming there until 1886, when he began the stud}^ of dentistry. 
In 1887 he entered the Cincinnati Dental College, from which he was 
graduated in 1888. He came to Brookfield wdthin the same year, and 
has been in active practice in that city ever since. Realizing that den- 
tistry is a very progressive science and art, and being ardently desirous 



HISTORY OF LI^'X COUXTY 517 

of keeping up with its progress and in touch with all its latest develop- 
ments, he has been an industrious student of his work, and has used all 
the means at his command to further his efforts. He is a member of 
the Missouri State Dental Society and the Northeastern Missouri Dental 
Club, and takes an active and helpful part in their proceedings, giving 
all the help he can to each and getting all the benefit he can for himself 
in return. 

Fraternally Dr. Scott is a member of the Order of Elks, and in that 
organization he also takes an earnest and serviceable interest. He was 
married in 1887 to Miss Frances Evans of Harrison county, this state. 
They have no ,children, but take a zealous part in the affairs of the 
city and county of their home, moral, mental, social and material, doing 
all they can to promote the general well being of the people and add to 
the consequence and celebrity of the region in which they live. 

As a citizen the doctor is in the front rank both in his usefulness 
and the esteem of the people throughout Linn county. As a man his 
character is high, his life is upright and clean and his public spirit is 
pronounced and practical in aims and results. In all respects he is an 
admirable representative of all that is best in the manhood and citizen- 
ship of Brookfield, Linn county and the state of Missouri. 



CHARLES L. SELLECK 

In the veins of Charles L. Selleck, one of the prosperous and 
prominent farmers and stock feeders of Parsons creek township, Linn 
county, the blood of New England mingles with that of Kentucky, and 
in his career he has exhibited the serviceable and commendable traits 
of the people of both sections. Although modest and retiring in his 
disposition, and seeks no opportunities for self-assertion, he is sturdy, 
steady and sterling in his manhood and ardently patriotic in his citi- 
zenship, warmly devoted to local interests and earnestly solicitous for 
the enduring welfare of his whole country in every phase of its multi- 
form life and activity. 

Mr. Selleck is a native of Adams county, Illinois, where his eyes 
opened to the scenes of this world on November 30, 1860. He is a son 
of Edward J. and Huldah J. (Robinson) Selleck, the former born in 
Vermont and the latter in Kentucky. The father, who has been a 
farmer all his life from his youth, except during a portion of the Civil 
War, was taken from his native state to Illinois by his parents in his 



518 HI8T0EY OF LINN COUNTY 

childhood, some time in the forties. His father, Looman Selleck, was 
born and reared in Vermont, and during the first excitement over the 
discovery of gold in California, went to that state in search of a speedy 
fortune. He subsequently died in that state. 

His son Edward was reared on the home farm in Adams county, 
Illinois, and farmed there until 1878, then came to Missouri and located 
in Chariton county. From there he moved soon afterward to Linn 
county, and a few years later moved back to Illinois. He is now living 
in Ralls county in this state. The mother died in 1873. They had five 
sons and two daughters, all of whom are now deceased but their son 
Charles and his sister Eosa E., who is the wife of Henry Adams, and 
lives in Arkansas. The father married a Miss Thorp for his second 
wife, and by this union became the parent of eight more children, all 
of them sons. For six months during the Civil War he served in the 
Seventy-fourth Illinois Volunteer Infantry, but took part in no actual 
hostilities, and at the end of the period mentioned was discharged on 
account of disabilities. 

Charles L. Selleck lived to the age of seventeen years in Illinois, 
then came with the rest of the family to Chariton county, in this state. 
There he completed his education and for a number of years afterward 
assisted his father on the home farm. In 1883 he came to Linn county, 
and for a time farmed land which he rented. In 1900 he bought the 
farm he now owns and cultivates, which he has greatly improved and 
raised in value and attractiveness, making it one of the choice country 
homes of his township, and one of high rank among all there are in the 
county. 

On February 6, 1878, Mr. Selleck was united in wedlock with Miss 
Mary J. Rosier, a daughter of John Rosier, who came to this county 
from Illinois in 1881, but moved to that state in his early manhood from 
Maryland. He died in Linn county in 1884, aged eighty-four years. 
Mr. and Mrs. Selleck have had two children, one of whom has died and 
the other, their son Harry, is living at home with his parents. 

Mr. Selleck has followed general farming from the dawn of his 
manhood, and for a number of years has also engaged extensively in 
feeding live stock for the markets. In political relations he is a Demo- 
crat, and as such has served as a member of the township board. Fra- 
ternally he belongs to the Order of Odd Fellows, the Knights of the 
Maccabees and the Modern Woodmen of America. He is well and 
favorably known in all parts of Linn and Chariton counties and highly 
esteemed in both. 




JEROME C. POST 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 519 



JEROME C. POST 



The memory of tliis pioneer merchant and energetic promoter of 
improvements in Brookfield is enshrined in the hearts of the people of 
Linn county, among whom he lived and was in business twenty-seven 
years, and to whom he gave a fine example of sterling and upright man- 
liness and commanding business enterprise, as well as great public 
spirit in developing the village of Brookfield, as it was when he became 
a resident of it, to the dignity and consequence of a city of considerable 
commercial influence, importance and celebrity throughout the state of 
Missouri. 

Mr. Post was born in the village of Gwinsburg, near Cleveland, 
Ohio, on March 4, 1838, and was the son and only child of Simon and 
Lydia (Markle) Post, who died within a few weeks of each other and 
left him an orphan when he was but eighteen months old. He was 
adopted by his uncle, Charles Post, with whom "he lived until the latter 's 
death, when the nephew was thrown on his own resources at the early 
age of eight years. The boy was resolute and self-reliant, and at once 
began to make his living by doing chores for a neighboring family, and 
by this means he maintained himself until he reached the age of 
seventeen. 

He was living at the time near Findlay, Ohio, and in 1853 was 
apprenticed to learn the tinner's and brazier's trade in that city. Prior 
to this he had secured a fair common school education supplemented by 
a course in the Findlay Academy. He mastered his trade in three 
years, then went to Cincinnati, where he worked as a journeyman until 
1858. From Cincinnati he went to Charleston, in what is now West 
Virginia, and worked there until the spring of 1859. At that time he 
returned to Findlay, where he remained until the spring of 1860. 

By this time he felt a longing for the farther West and moved to 
Fond du Lac, Wisconsin, where he remained four years in all. But 
after a short stay in that place he went to Cleveland, and in that city 
in 1862 was married to Miss Julia P. Hollister, a native of Jonesville, 
Saratoga county, New York. He then returned to Fond du Lac, and 
in the summer of 1865 came to Brookfield. Soon after his arrival in 
that city he bought a small business establishment and went to work. 
His line of commodities included tinware, hardware, stoves and kindred 
articles of merchandise, and by industry, enterprise and good manage- 
ment of a high order gradually built up a large and flourishing trade. ^ 

When his business outgrew its accommodations he bought a busi- 
ness block and moved into that, where, in the course of a few years he 



530 HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 

had the leading hardware establishment in the city. In 1871 this block 
was destroyed by fire, and Mr. Post then built the fine block now occu- 
pied by the James Jewelry Company. He retired from business in 
1892, selling his plant and good will to his son, Marvin C. Post, a sketch 
of whom will be found in this work. When the father retired he went 
to California and resided at Pomona, California, where he passed the 
remainder of his life and died on November 3, 1896, at the age of 
fifty-eight years. 

Mr. Post was a Freemason, and a member of the Ancient Order of 
United Workmen. He and his wife were the parents of eight children, 
four of whom are living : Minnie, who is now the wife of Jno. D. Howe, 
of Brookfield; Marvin C, who is now conducting the business he pur- 
chased of his father, and which he has expanded to greater proportions 
than it had when he acquired it ; Louie, who is the wife of Frank Arnold 
of Brookfield ; and Kate, who is the wife of George Howard of Walla 
Walla, Washington. 

Mrs. Post, the mother of these children, is a daughter of Ephraim 
Hollister, a pioneer in Ohio, who was captain of a company in the 
Union army during the Civil war, and lost his life in that renowned and 
sanguinary conflict. She is still living at the age of seventy years, but 
so hale, vigorous and active, that she gives her personal attention to 
all her large property interests. Carrying out the spirit of improve- 
ment shown by her husband, she has erected five modern dwellings in 
Brookfield within the last few years. She is one of the most highly 
esteemed matrons in the county, and is well worthy of all the regard 
bestowed upon her. 



JONATHAN BURDALL 

For years a stationary engineer, and connected with prominent 
manufactories while engaged in that occupation, then a farmer for 
almost a quarter of a century, and now one of the leading merchants of 
Brookfield, Jonathan Burdall has had an extended and varied experi- 
ence in usefulness and self-development, and the manner in which he 
manages his business at present shows that he has profited by the les- 
sons of life as they have come to him, and used them all for his benefit. 

Mr. Burdall was born in Lincolnshire, England, on August 21, 1840, 
and is a son of John and Elizabeth (Chantrey) Burdall, also natives of 
that country. The father was a watchmaker and machinist, and came 
to the United States with his family in 1850. He first located himself 
and his family in Utica, New York, and there he remained four years. 



HISTORY OF LIXX COUNTY 521 

At the end of that period he moved to Syracuse in the same state, and 
some little time afterward to Zanesville, Ohio. During the Civil War 
he enlisted in 1863 in an Ohio regiment of volunteer infantry. But mil- 
itary service proved too severe for him, and he died in a hospital in 
Louisville, Kentucky, in 1864. The mother died in Chicago in 1886. 

Of the four sons and two daughters born of their union only three 
of the sons are living. The grandfather of these children, William 
Burdall, died in England, where the family had lived for many genera- 
tions, in 1848. He was a good representative of the honest and indus- 
trious yoemanry of England, and both his son and his grandson, the 
interesting subject of this brief memoir, have exemplified in their daily 
lives of usefulness and fidelity to duty many of the best traits of Ameri- 
can citizenship. 

Jonathan Burdall was but ten years of age when the family came 
to this country. He attained his manhood in the state of New York, 
and in its schools completed the education he had begun in those of his 
native land. When he left school he began working for himself as a 
stationary engineer, and after acquiring a thorough knowledge of the 
work, moved to Saginaw, Michigan, in 1862, and there operated and 
managed the first steam salt works, the manufacture of salt being a 
leading industry in the region to which he gave new impulse, improved 
methods and commanding success. 

In 1865 he changed his residence to Chicago and there operated an 
engine until 1867, when he moved to St. Louis, Missouri, where he 
remained until 1870. In that year he came to Brookfield, and soon 
afterward took up his residence on a farm in Grantsville township, on 
which he lived and labored prosperously for nearly twenty-three years. 
In 1892 he again located in Brookfield and turned his attention to mer- 
chandising. In 1899 he started the coal business which he is still con- 
ducting. He has managed his business with intelligence and care, and 
has risen to a righ rank in mercantile circles in this part of the state. 

Mr. Burdall was married in 1859 to Miss Helen D. Greer, a native 
of New York state. They have six children living: William J., who 
resides in Chicago; Helen D., who is now the wife of J. H. Shafer, of St. 
Joseph, Missouri; John S., whose home is at Pingree, Idaho; Jennie, who 
is the wife of Matthew Penhole, of the state of Washington; Lena, who 
is the wife of J. F. Hunter and also a resident of Washington; and Harry 
G., who was a resident of Topeka, Kansas, and has since died November 
19, 1911. All the members of the family belong to the Baptist church, 
and all, in their several localities, are regarded with esteem because of 



522 HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 

the upriglitness of their lives and the progressive and elevated character 
of their citizenship. 



FREDERICK W. GOULD 

Born and reared on a farm and himself a farmer from his youth, 
the life story of Frederick W. Gould, one of the prominent farmers of 
Jefferson township, in this county, presents few spectacular features 
and has but little of what is thrilling in incident and adventure in its 
make-up. He has, however, lived in various places and mingled with 
people working under w^idely differing conditions, and in this way has 
had variety in his experience which has been of great value to him in 
teaching him knowledge of himself and of his fellow men. 

Mr. Gould was born near Toronto,- Canada, on December 1, 1852, 
and moved with his parents, first across the line into the state of New 
Y'^ork, and then by gradual stages westward until they finally located 
in Linn county. He is a son of James and Mary (Matthews) Gould, 
natives of Somersetshire, England, where the father's life began in 
1817 and the mother's in 1821. They were married in that part of 
England in 1850, and in the same year emigrated to Canada, where they 
lived nine years. 

In 1859 they moved to Niagara county. New York, where the father 
farmed until 1865. He then changed his residence to Hillsdale, Michi- 
gan, and there the family lived until 1879. In that year all its members 
took another flight in the direction of the setting sun, and came to Mis- 
souri, locating in Livingston county. After a residence of six years in 
that county they moved to Linn county, and here, in 1885, the father 
bought a farm of 102 acres, the greater part of which is now within 
the corporate limits of the town of Laclede. On this farm the father 
died in 1904. The mother is still living, aged ninety, but even at that 
age full of animation and energy, and sound and vigorous in body. 

The father was married twice, his first union being with a Miss 
Carp. By his marriage with that lady he became the father of four 
children, two of whom ai'e living, one in Laclede, this county, and one 
in California. The fruits of his second marriage were six children, four 
of whom are living: Frederick W., the immediate subject of this 
sketch; Emma, who remains at home and cares for her mother; Agnes 
K., who is the Avife of Edgar Van Fleet and resides in Hillsdale, Michi- 
gan, and Everett E. The mother belongs to the Methodist Episcopal 
church, of which the father was also a devout member in his lifetime. 

Their son Frederick grew to the age of seven years in Canada, to 



HISTOEY OF LINX COUNTY 523 

that of thirteen in Niagara .county, New York, and to that of twenty- 
seven in Hillsdale county, Michigan. He was thirty-three when he 
became a resident of Linn county, and has lived here twenty-seven 
years. He has never been engaged in any other occupation than farm- 
ing, but he has made a success of that, both in the quality of his work 
and the profits he has secured in it. He is progressive and enterprising, 
studies his land and the advances in the science of agriculture, and 
uses excellent judgment based on intelligence in all his operations on 
the farm. 

In political faith and allegiance he adheres to the Eepublican party 
and in a quiet and unostentatious way works for its success in all cam- 
paigns. But he has never sought or desired a public office of any kind, 
although, for the good of the community, he has filled some in the town- 
ship in which he lives. But his interest in the welfare of his locality 
and its people is constant and practical, and finds expression in the 
support he gives all matters of public improvement. He has never 
married. 



MOSES B. HARTER 

The interesting subject of this brief memoir was brought to Mis- 
souri and Linn county at an early period of its history and when he 
was himself a boy but seven j^ears old. Since then he has had a some- 
what adventurous career, living and working in a number of different 
localities and employed in several different pursuits. He has also con- 
tributed directly and substantially to the growth and development of 
this county and given considerable aid to the expansion of some of its 
industries. 

Mr. Harter was born in Harrison county, Virginia, now West Vir- 
ginia, on August 2, 1860, a son of Charles P. and Margaret (Utterback) 
Harter, the former a native of Pennsylvania and the latter of Virginia. 
The father was a merchant and hotelkeeper in West Virginia until 
1867, when he moved his family to this county. He located in Laclede 
and was for some time engaged in the meat business there, then turned 
his attention to farming, which he still follows. During the Civil AVar 
he served in the Union army in the West Virginia Volunteer Infantry, 
and after the close of the sectional strife returned to his West Virginia 
home and former occupations. 

He was married in West Virginia some years before the war, and 
he and his wife became the parents of seven sons and two daughters. 
Five of the sons and two of the daughters are living, and four of tlie 



524 ■ HISTOEY OF LIXN COUNTY 

seven reside in Linn county. Moses B., who was the second child of 
the family in the order of birth, grew from the age of seven years to 
manhood in this county and obtained his education in the schools of 
Laclede. He began life as a farmer here, but soon afterward went to 
Prescott, Arizona, where he engaged in silver mining for one year. He 
then returned to Missouri and passed the next three years in the south- 
ern part of the state training horses for speed, especially as trotters. 

At the end of the last period mentioned he came back to Linn 
county, and here he has ever since resided, having lived on the farm 
he now owns and occupies nineteen years. The farm comprises 160 
acres and is devoted to farming in a general way. But Mr. Harter 
makes a specialty of breeding horses and jacks for the market. The 
strains he breeds in horses are pedigreed trotters and registered Per- 
cherons and Belgians for draft purposes. He has been very successful 
in the business and the output of his stables has a high rank in the 
marts of trade and throughout a wide extent of the country surround- 
ing Linn county. 

Mr. Harter was first married on March 7, 1887, to Miss Elva 0. 
Means, a daughter of Jacob and Margaret Means, who came to 
this county to live about 1870. Mr. and Mrs. Harter had two 
children: Their son Herbert C, who is a resident of the state of Iowa, 
and their daughter, who is now the wife of Harry Baylis, of Linn 
county. The mother died in 1891, and on September 22, 1907, the father 
contracted a second marriage in which he w^as united with Miss Eliza- 
beth Sensenich, a daughter of John and Harriet (Diller) Sensenich, 
who became residents of Linn county in 1878. No children have been 
born of Mr. Harter 's second marriage. 

In the public affairs of the township and county of his home Mr. 
Harter has taken a deep and serviceable interest, and has rendered the 
people excellent service as township trustee. He is a Republican in 
political faith and allegiance, a member of the Modern Woodmen of 
America in fraternal relations, and belongs to the Methodist Episcopal 
church in religious connection. The people of the county know him 
well and esteem him highly. 



OSCAR H. PRATT 



This enterprising and progressive farmer and highly esteemed 
citizen of Clay township, this county, has a very unusual record in this 
part of the country in the fact that he was born, reared and has passed 
the whole of his life to the present time (1912) on the farm on which 



HISTOKY OF LIXN COUNTY 535 

he now lives. He therefore understands thoroughly the soil he is culti- 
vating, and the results of his farming show that he knows how to 
handle it wisely. He also knows his township and its people well, is 
familiar with their needs and aspirations, and with true public spirit 
and genuine interest in their welfare, he does his part as fully as he 
can in helping to provide for the best interests of the region and all 
that is connected with it. 

Mr. Pratt's life began on June 22, 1868, and he is a son of Henry 
and Ibeline (Connelly) Pratt, the former a native of Tennessee and the 
latter of Kentucky. The father was born in 1825 and the mother in 
1828. The father was reared to the age of nineteen in his native state, 
and in 1841 came from there to Missouri and Linn county in company 
with his brother, John M. Pratt, who was for many years a respected 
and influential citizen of this county, where his life ended in 1904. 

Oscar H. Pratt's father, Henry Pratt, was a poor young man when 
he came to this state, bringing with him nothing in the way of capital 
but his stout heart, clear brain and ready hand, all guided by a resolute 
spirit and a self-reliant nature that made him ready for any require- 
ment or emergency. The first money he ever earned he was paid for 
splitting rails, and with this he purchased a hat. After his arrival in 
Linn county he worked on farms by the month, and in a few years 
accumulated enough to secure 200 acres of wild and unbroken land. 
He got this into a state of some fruitfulness, and then his profits began 
to increase at a more rapid rate and about 1855 he was able to purchase 
191 acres of the farm his son now lives on. This was also wild land 
when he became possessed of it, but he improved it, and cultivated it 
with skill and vigor, making a good farm and a comfortable home of 
it, and living on it until his death, which occurred on June 30, 1891. 
The mother died on September 7, 1894. 

They were the parents of eight children, of whom six are living: 
William, John, Arthur and Oscar, sons, and Alice and Emma, daugh- 
ters. Alice is now the widow of Daniel Maynard, of Kansas City, and 
Emma is the wife of W. P. Thome, of Linneus. The parents belonged 
to the Baptist church, which they joined in 1865. The father kept on 
buying land as fast as he cold clear, break up and improve it, and at 
one time owned 701 acres. 

The life story of Oscar H. Pratt presents no specially dramatic or 
showy features. It is that of a plain, industrious, thrifty and enter- 
prising farmer; a good citizen attentive to every duty required of him 
in regard to the civil, social and political life of his community; a faith- 
ful and capable official when called into the public service, and an 



5->G HISTOPtY OF LINN COUNTY 

upright, reputable, worthy and estimable man in every relation in life. 
As such he has won a strong hold on the confidence and esteem of the 
people all over Linn county. 

Mr. Pratt was married on December 5, 1906, to Miss Alice E. Har- 
ris, a native of Nodaway county, Missouri, whose parents, George and 
Elizabeth (McPherrin) Harris, now live in Brookfield. One child has 
been born of the union, a son named Howard H. Mr. Pratt is a Demo- 
crat in political relations, and as such has served as township trustee, 
but serving with equal fidelity all of the people without regard to party 
considerations. Fraternally he is a member of the Order of Elks, and 
takes a cordial and helpful interest in the work of his lodge. He is in 
all respects an excellent citizen and a very useful man in his neigh- 
borhood. 



EUGENE SIDEBOTTOM 

Having come to Linn county as a boy of six almost at the dawn of 
authentic history in this region, and having lived in the .county con- 
tinuously for a longer period than almost any other of its present resi- 
dents, Eugene Sidebottom, of Clay township, would be revered as a 
personage of interest by its people if he had no other title to their 
regard. But he has also been a constant and serviceable contributor 
to the progress and improvement of the county from his youth, and for 
many years a factor of moment in its industrial and commercial influ- 
ence and importance. He is a progressive, enterprising and prosperous 
farmer, a wide-awake and public-spirited citizen and a representative 
man in this part of Missouri. 

Mr. Sidebottom was born in Mason county, Kentucky, on June 18, 
1851. His parents, Robinson E. and Nancy (Burton) Sidebottom, were 
also natives of Kentucky, the former born in Green county and the 
latter in same state and county. The father's life began in 1809. He 
was reared in Green county and obtained his education in the primitive 
schools of his boyhood in a region then not far from the borders of 
civilization, if not actually on the frontier. He worked on his father's 
farm while growing to manhood, and after leaving school began farm- 
ing on his own account, and also assisted in a distillery owned an(, 
operated by his father. 

While yet young he became a convert to the Christian religion 
according to the creed of the Methodist Episcopal church, and soon 
afterward began preaching in its service, starting his work in the min- 
istry as early as 1832, when he was but twenty-three years of age. He 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 527 

preached in Kentucky until 1857, when he moved his family to Mis- 
souri and located in Linn county on a farm between Linneus and 
Laclede, which he occupied for four years. The family made the trip 
from Kentucky by boat, down the Ohio and up the Mississippi and 
Missouri to Brunswick, Chariton county. There the weary voyagers 
disembarked, and the rest of their journey was made overland with 
teams, and it was wearying, too, although not a great distance. 

The father at once began preaching, in connection with his farm- 
ing operations, in the course of a short time holding meetings in all 
parts of the county. He continued his church w^ork almost to the time 
of his death, which occurred in 1879, and built the Methodist Episcopal 
church in Laclede and others at different places. He married many of 
the older persons in the county and preached a great many funeral ser- 
mons, being always ready to respond to any call to duty, and always 
faithful in the performance of any task he undertook, however great 
the inconvenience or discomfort to himself. 

In 1862 he bought the farm on which his son Eugene now lives, 
which was a partly improved tract of prairie when he purchased it, and 
which he broke up and improved with comfortable buildings, good 
fences and other requirements. He passed the remainder of his days 
on this farm looking after its cultivation and further development. His 
widow survived him twenty years, passing away in 1899. They were 
the parents of ten children, seven sons and three daughters. Six of the 
ten are living, three of them in this county, and all esteemed as among 
its most worthy citizens. 

The grandfather, William Sidebottom, was born in Virginia and in 
his young manhood became a pioneer in Kentucky. He was a planter 
and distiller, carrying on both industries for many years, but in the 
latter part of his life closing his distillery and destroying his still. In 
the Revolutionary War he fought under General Washington and won 
his approval, earlier members of the family having come to this coun- 
try from Wales prior to that event and became extensive planters in 
the Old Dominion while it was still under the domination of the 
British crown. 

Eugene Sidebottom was reared from the age of six to manhood in 
this county and obtained his education in its schools of the period of 
his boyhood, which were not unlike those attended by his father in 
Kentucky. As soon as he was able he began assisting in the work of 
the farm which required every available hand and all the force the 
family could command for its cultivation and development. He has 
lived on it ever since, and in its present high state of improvement and 



528 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

productiveness it represents the work of two generations of the same 
family, or three, in fact, for his sons aided him in farming it during 
their minority as he did his father during the life of that gentleman 
in this part of the country. 

Mr. Sidebottom was married in Linn county on March 14, 1880, to 
Miss Alma M. Hardy, a daughter of Moses D. Hardy, who came to this 
county in 1865. Of the eight children born of the union six are living: 
Jay D., who resides in Colorado; Edwin E., who has his home in Mon- 
tana; Mark E., who lives in Texas; Alvin H., also a resident of Colo- 
rado; Ruth B., who is a teacher in the Commercial college at Cameron, 
Missouri, and Lissa May, who is still a member of the parental house- 
hold, but is now pursuing a special course of instruction in music in 
Indianapolis, Indiana. The father is a Republican in politics, but he 
has never been an active partisan and has never held or desired a pub- 
lic office. Both parents are devout members of the Methodist Episcopal 
church in Meadville. Mr. Sidebottom 's father and mother and his 
maternal grandmother, Jane Burton, were buried in Linn county at the 
time of their demise. In all parts of the county he is held in the high- 
est esteem for his genuine worth and elevated citizenship. 



EDMUND B. ALLEN 

Born on a farm in Indiana, and when he was one year old taken 
by his parents from the locality of his birth and brought to Missouri; 
reared by them on a farm in this state the land of which was acquired 
from the government and was still virgin to the plow, never yet having 
heard the persuasive voice of the husbandman or felt the quickening 
and softening influence of his molding hand; then being chosen by the 
people of the county of his residence to serve them in an important 
official position, after passing a number of years as a grocer in active 
trade with the public, Edmund B. Allen, of Laclede, in this county, has 
had a varied experience, but the basis of it all has been connection with 
the soil and the interests of those who cultivate it. 

Mr. Allen's life began in Daviess county, Indiana, on December 
28, 1853, and he is a son of Rev. Calvin and Elvira (Crook) Allen, the 
former born near Paint Rock, Campbell county, Tennessee, on October 
26, 1827, and the latter in Henry county, Indiana, in 1829. The history 
of their lives is briefly given on another page of this volume. Their 
son Edmund B., who is the only one of their otfspring now living, came 
with them and the other members of the family to Grundy county, Mis- 
souri, in 1854, and to Laclede, in Linn county, in the fall of 1875. 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 539 

Before coming to this county lie completed his education at the Kirks- 
ville State Normal School, which he attended in 1871 and 1872. 

In 1876 he began an enterprise in the grocery and dry goods trade 
in partnership with J. N. Wilson, with which he was connected a num- 
ber of years. In 1894 he was elected sheriff of Linn county, and in 
March, 1906, was appointed internal revenue collector for this district 
with his office in St. Louis, and on March 1, 1910, he was reappointed 
to this position for a term of four years. He has performed the duties 
of the office in a way that has been entirely satisfactory to the govern- 
ment and also to the men and corporations aff^ected by its operations, 
and his wisdom and capacity as a public official have been warmly 
commended by both. 

Mr. Allen has been a zealous and effective worker in political 
affairs on the Republican side of the line from his youth, and served as 
chairman of the Linn ,county central committee of his party for ten 
years continuously. But while loyal to his party, in office and out, he 
has never allowed his party spirit to overbear or diminish his interest 
in the substantial and enduring welfare of his township and county, but 
has at all times taken an active part in promoting that and the comfort, 
convenience and general advancement of their residents. 

Throughout all of the thirty-seven years of his residence in Linn 
county he has never allowed an undertaking of value for the better- 
ment of the region to go without his intelligent and serviceable support, 
and he has been at the origin of many good projects in this behalf. In 
connection with all such matters he has been as helpful through the 
wisdom of his counsel in reference to them as he has been energetic and 
productive in practical work. He sees clearly, he acts promptly, he 
employs all his resources in matters of public improvement, and his 
plans in reference to them always take in the whole situation. He is 
regarded in all parts of Linn county as one of Jefferson township's 
most useful, upright and representative citizens, and his record in pub- 
lic and private life fully sustains and justifies the high estimate placed 
on his worth by all classes of the people and universally approved. 



JAMES GOODWINE 

The most extensive farmer and live stock breeder and dealer in 
Linn county is James Goodwine, whose farm in Parsons creek township 
comprises 1,500 acres, and whose operations in live stock are commen- 
surate with his acreage. Carrying on his business at the magnitude it 



530 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

lias, he is one of the most useful citizens in respect to the material inter- 
ests of the county, and one of the great public benefactors in this part 
of the state. He necessarily employs a large number of persons and 
thereby gives comfort, prosperity and happiness to numbers of homes 
and their inmates; and as his productions must be very considerable, 
he adds by them greatly to the industrial and commercial importance, 
influence and material wealth of the county. 

Mr. Goodwine was born near the city of Danville in Vermilion 
county, Illinois, on May 19, 1851, and is a son of John W. and Jane 
(Charleton) Goodwine, the former a native of Indiana and the latter 
of Tennessee. The father farmed in his native state until 1848, when 
he moved to Vermilion county, Illinois, and there in a few years became 
a leader in farming and live stock operations, his business equaling in 
magnitude that of almost any other man in the state, if he did not sur- 
pass them all. He died in Illinois in 1909 after making a record of 
which any might justly be proud. He was married twice, and his 
second wife is still living. 

Their son James was reared in his native county, and after com- 
pleting his education farmed 680 acres of the parental homestead for 
a number of years, devoting himself to general farming and raising 
live stock. He, therefore, had good training for his enterprise in this 
county before he began it. In 1906 he came to Linn county and bought 
the farm of 1,500 acres, which he now owns, lives on and cultivates. 
He is a wise and judicious farmer, as well as a very vigorous, indus- 
trious and enterprising one, always driving his business and never 
giving it a chance to drive him, and his returns are fufty in keeping 
with the magnitude and character of his work and the skill of his man- 
agement of it. This is equally true of the live stock department of his 
great industry, and together they form two great currents, one of out- 
lay in effort and the other of income in results, that are striking in 
their volume and the steadiness of their constant and continually aug- 
menting flow. 

Mr. Goodwine was married in January — , 1879, to Miss Minerva 
King, a native of New Jersey. She died on September 1, 1901, leaving 
five of her children to mourn their loss: Nellie, who is the wife of J. C. 
Newberry, and resides in Henning, Illinois; Roy, who is associated 
in business with his father; Harry, who also lives in Missouri; Marie, 
who has charge of her father's household- and Goldie, who is the wife 
of Frank Hoover, and has her home in Danville, Illinois. 

It is not to be supposed that Mr. Goodwine is wholly absorbed in 
his own affairs. Extensive and exacting as his business is, he still finds 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 531 

time and energy to take an earnest and very practical interest in tlie 
affairs of liis township and county, and labor effectively for the welfare 
of their residents. By the very nature of his mind and make-up he is 
progressive and always looking for the best and most considerable 
results. He applies this disposition to the improvement and further 
development of the locality in which he lives with the same energy and 
excellent judgment that impels it in connection with his private busi- 
ness, and this makes him one of the best citizens of the county, which 
everybody acknowledges him to be. 



JOHN C. AILOR 



Although a native of Tennessee and born in the eastern part of 
that state, seven hundred or eight hundred miles from his present resi- 
dence, John C. Ailor, one of the best known and most enterprising and 
successful farmers and live stock men in Parsons creek township, this 
county, is to all intents and purposes a Linn county man, as all that he 
is and all that he has achieved are Linn county products. He was but 
three years old when his parents brought him to this locality from his 
former Tennessee home, and his growth, mental and physical training, 
social culture, capacity and enterprise as a citizen have been acquired 
here. 

Mr. Ailor 's life began in eastern Tennessee in 1848, his parents, 
Luke and Edith ( Wood) Ailor, being then residents of that part of our 
neighboring state. The father was a farmer and brought his family 
to Missouri in 1851, making the journey by means of an ox team, and 
consuming the greater part of two months in doing it. On his arrival 
in this county he first located east of Linneus on the Carroll farm, 
where he lived two years. He then bought the farm of 100 acres on 
which his son John C. now lives. The whole tract was covered with 
timber at the time, and he and his sons cleared it for farming and 
brought it to high productiveness by their continued and well applied 
industry. 

The mother died on this farm in 1888 and the father in 1893. They 
were the parents of two sons and six daughters, all living but two of 
the daughters, four of the surviving six being residents of this county. 
The father was a renowned hunter, killing turkeys, deer and other game 
in great quantities for a number of years. When he settled on this 
farm there were only two houses for dwellings in this part of the county. 
He did his trading at Linneus and at Brunswick on the river, places 



532 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

near at hand and easy of access now, but then distant and difficult to 
get to by reason of the lack of roads, bridges and other facilities of 
travel. 

John C. Ailor grew to manhood on the farm he now owns and occu- 
pies, in the clearing and breaking up of which he assisted, and aided in 
cultivating it until the death of his father, when he became the owner 
of it. He has ever since farmed it, and for a number of years has also 
been extensively engaged in raising live stock on it, breeding regis- 
tered horses of the Percheron strain, registered jacks and superior 
grades of hogs and cattle. He has made both his farming and his stock 
industry profitable by giving each careful attention and conducting 
them with intelligence and good judgment, always studying the needs 
of his business and applying the results of his study and observation 
judiciously. 

Mr. Ailor is a Democrat in political relations, but he has never been 
an active partisan or sought or desired a political office, although he 
has served for a number of years on the school board. In religious 
affiliation he is connected with the Church of Christ. On October 6, 
1877, he was united in marriage with Miss Bettie Martin, a daughter 
of Valentine and Vasliti (Boone) Martin, both now deceased, who came 
to this county from Tennessee. Mr. and Mrs. Ailor have six children 
living: Dora, who is the wife of Charles Goodwin and resides in this 
county; Charles, whose home is in Oregon; Earl, who is also a resident 
of Linn county; and Adelbert, Jessie and Mark, who are still living at 
home with their parents. The father is a public-spirited and progres- 
sive man with reference to the affairs of his township and county, as 
he is in connection with his own, and is widely known as a very enter- 
prising and useful citizen. The people of the whole county esteem him 
for his genuine worth and elevated manhood. 



WILLIAM A. BALCOM 

Born on a farm in the state of New York, reared from the age of 
five years on another in Wisconsin, a Union soldier during a portion of 
the Civil War, and since 1866 a farmer in Linn county, William A. 
Balcom, of Jefferson township, has been useful in many places and in 
different capacities, and in each has proven himself worthy of esteem 
because of his fidelity to duty and his ability in performing it. His life 
has been varied in location and calling, but he has always been the 



HISTORY OF LIXX COUNTY 533 

same straightforward, upright and industrious man, whatever his sur- 
roundings were. 

Mr. Balcom is one of the fast fading body of hardy pioneers who 
laid the foundations of Linn county's civil, educational and religious 
institutions, and started it on its interesting career of progress. He 
has lived long among this people, and been permitted to witness and 
;enjoy the fruits of the early labors of his companions and himself, who 
came to this part of the state M^hen it was but little past its days of an 
almost untrodden domain, and the people revere him as one of the 
county's real founders, subsequent builders and present patriarchs. 

His life began in Wayne county. New York, July 13, 1837, and he 
is a son of Jesse and Martha (Reed) Balcom, the former a native of 
Connecticut and the latter of the state of New Y^ork. The father was 
a mason and farmer. He lived in New York state until 1843, then 
moved his family to Walworth county, Wisconsin, where he cleared a 
tract of eighty acres of wild land near Lake Geneva and transformed it 
into a good farm. Both parents died in Wisconsin. They had five 
children, three of whom are living, William being the only one residing 
in Missouri. The grandfather, John Balcom, was a manufacturer and 
farmer. He died in New York. 

William A. Balcom was but five years old when his parents moved 
from New York to Wisconsin. He grew to manhood on the Walworth 
county farm, which he helped to clear and improve, and obtained a 
common school education in the neighborhood. His life was unevent- 
ful until 1864, when he enlisted in the Union army in the Forty-ninth 
Wisconsin Volunteer Infantry, then it assumed something of a tragic 
nature. He served until the close of the war, but saw no actual hos- 
tilities, being assigned during his whole connection with the army to 
detail duty in St. Louis. 

When the war's ruffled plumes were smoothed and the battle flags 
were furled, he returned to his Wisconsin home, and in 1866 came to 
Missouri and Linn county. He located in Jefferson township, where he 
is still engaged in farming on a farm he has occupied ten years. He 
helped to clear two others and finally bought this one as a permanent 
residence. He has cultivated it with intelligence and vigor, and it 
shows in its every phase and feature the marks of skillful husbandry. 

Mr. Balcom has been married three times. His first union was with 
Miss Elizabeth Kady, and was solemnized in this state in 1867. She 
died in 1869, and he was united in his second marriage, with Miss 
Laura B. Brunemer, in 1871. She passed away in 1879, leaving one 
daughter, who is now Mrs. May Duroche and lives in Rosedale, Kansas. 



534 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

The third marriage took place in 1882 and joined him with Miss Nan- 
nie E. Clough, a native of Missouri and daughter of Elbridge and Lettie 
(Sensintaffaer) Clough, long esteemed residents of this county. They 
have two sons living, Kussel L. and Harold C. The mother is still 
living also. The father is a Republican in politics and a member of 
the Grand Army of the Republic fraternally. He is an admirable type 
of the sturdy pioneer, a man of high character, and is everywhere held 
in the most cordial and admiring esteem. 



CLELLEN G. BIGGER 

Having filled the office of county surveyor of Linn county for a con- 
tinuous period of twenty-seven years, and since leaving it having still 
been engaged in surveying in many parts of the county, and having 
filled a number of county and township offices at diiTerent times in his 
long career of usefulness to his people, Clellen G. Bigger of Marceline 
towjiship is probably the best known and most extensively acquainted 
man in the county. He has carried his compass and surveyor's chain 
all over it and become familiar with and known to the people in every 
section by mingling freely and frequently with them. Wherever he is 
known he is highly esteemed as a sterling man and useful citizen, and 
one whom the residents of the county would hardly know how to do 
without. 

Mr. Bigger is a native of Marion county, Kentucky, where his life 
began on October 22, 1837. His parents, Harrison E. and Keziah 
(Crews) Bigger, were natives of Virginia. The father was born in 
February 3, 1813, in that state and was taken to Kentucky by his par- 
ents in his childhood. After reaching man's estate he became a farmer 
and continued his labors as such to the end of his life. He moved to 
Missouri in 1844 and located in Linn county, taking up his residence 
at first in the western part and afterward removing to a tract of 160 
acres of wild land four miles south of Linneus. He cleared this piece 
of land and transformed it into a farm of considerable value, then 
moved to another adjoining it, on which he died on May 10, 1886. The 
mother died in 1852, and the father married twice after her death, los- 
ing his second wife also by an untimely demise long before her period 
of usefulness was ended. 

By his first marriage, which was with the mother of Clellen G. 
Bigger, he became the father of two sons and three daughters who grew 
to maturity. Clellen G. and one of his brothers are the only members 




CLELLEN G. BIGGER 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 535 

of the family now living. Another brother of the subject of this brief 
review was a soldier in the Federal army during the Civil war before 
he reached the age of manhood and died of the measles at Macon, 
Missouri, October 14, 1862, while in the service. He belonged to Com- 
pany I, Twenty-third Missouri Volunteer Infantry, and saw consid- 
erable field duty while his life lasted. 

By one of his subsequent marriages the father begot three sons 
and one daughter. Of these four children three are living. His father, 
William Bigger, the grandfather of Clellen G., was born and reared in 
England. When he came to this country soon after the Revolution he 
located in Virginia, and when the war of 1812 was in progress he raised 
a regiment for the defense of his adopted country against the aggres- 
sion of the land of his nativity. The war was of short duration and his 
regiment was never called into active service, but was ready for the 
call qf any time. From Virginia the grandfather moved to Kentucky, 
where he died. He was a civil engineer by profession and found plenty 
of professional work to do, in the unimproved state of that part of the 
country in which he lived. 

Clellen G. Bigger was reared and educated in this county, attending 
first the district schools and afterward a school of more advanced grade 
in Linneus. He taught school for a number of years, and also began 
the study of medicine in the office and under the direction of Dr. 
Powers of Linneus. But destiny had marked him for other duties than 
the practice of medicine, and when its call came he obeyed it without 
hesitation or reluctance. In 1861 he was appointed county surveyor 
to succeed Jacob Holland, who resigned the office after holding it a 
short time. 

This appointment changed all the plans Mr. Bigger had formed for 
himself. He filled the office of county surveyor for twenty-seven years 
in succession, and since giving it up has continued his work as a sur- 
veyor. In 1861, during August and September, he was a member of 
the Provisional State Militia. He also served four years as president 
of the county court, as county assessor in 1866, and as deputy sheriff 
and tax collector for two years, while from time to time other township 
or county offices had the benefit of his wisdom, intelligence and ability 
as their incumbent. 

In politics he is a pronounced Republican. In fraternal relations 
he is connected with the Masonic order. In local public affairs he has 
long been one of the forceful and energetic agencies for good, aiding 
in the promotion of the enduring welfare of his township and county 
by every means at his command, and as a farmer, in spite of his other 



536 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

engagements, numerous and exacting as they have been, he is in the 
froijt rank. He located on his present farm in Marceline township in 
1872, and it has been his home ever since. 

So accurate has been Mr. Bigger 's work as a surveyor that it has 
brought him a high and wide-spread reputation. During the construc- 
tion of the Santa Fe Railroad he was called upon to measure forty miles 
of it to settle a dispute between the company and some of the con- 
tractors who were building the road. He was married on August 24, 
1870, to Miss Leah J. Powers, a daughter of Dr. J. F. and Isabella M. 
(Brownlee) Powers of Linneus. Nine children have been born to the 
union : Guy W. ; Mabel, who is now the wife of Samuel N. Roseberry of 
Bucklin ; Edward M. ; Ida, who is living at home ; Ray F. ; Charles ; and 
Eva, Harry and Lucile, all of whom are still under the parental roof- 
tree. No citizen of Linn county stands higher in the regard of the 
people than Mr. Bigger, and none deserves to. 



WILLIAM R. FRAKES 

A pioneer of Linn county and one of the best farmers in Jefferson 
township, William R. Frakes has two strong titles to local distinction 
and public regard, and they are bestowed on him by the people of the 
county in liberal measure. He is modest, however, and claims no spe- 
cial consideration for himself, even though he has himself been the 
architect and builder of his career, and was also, during the Civil War, 
something of a martyr to the sectional strife that so woefully devas- 
tated portions of our country and recovered from his losses then sus- 
tained by his own efforts. 

Mr. Frakes was born in Perry county, Indiana, on Christmas day, 
1844. His parents, John D. and Nancy (Brown) Frakes, were born in 
Kentucky, the former in Nelson county, in 1811, and the latter in Meade 
county, in 1818. The father was reared and educated in his native 
state, and soon after attaining his manhood moved to Indiana. In 1857 
he moved his family to Missouri, and located in Laclede. In 1861 he 
bought a farm in Jefferson township, all prairie land, on which he 
erected one of the first dwellings built in that locality, and on that farm 
he passed the rest of his life and died on February 7, 1874. The mother 
died on January 10, 1895. They had six children, five of whom grew to 
maturity. All are now deceased but William and his sister, Mrs. Elvira 
Moore, who resides in Kansas City, Kansas. 

In June, 1861, the father enlisted in the Union army in Company 



HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 537 

A, Eighteenth Missouri Volunteer Infantry, but at the end of eighteen 
months he was discharged on account of disability incurred in the serv- 
ice. He was first a Whig and later a Republican in politics. The 
paternal grandfather, John Frakes, of Scotch ancestry, was born in 
Kentucky and died in Indiana, well advanced in years and standing 
high in his community. He also was a farmer, as many of his fore- 
fathers were and all his male descendants have been, and those of them 
who are living still are. 

William R. Frakes was twelve years old when he was brought by 
his parents to Laclede, and completed his education in the common 
school in that town. He began the task of providing for his own live- 
lihood on a farm and has been a farmer ever since. During the Civil 
War his home was robbed by the predatory spoilesmen known as bush- 
whackers, who terrorized large portions of this state and did a great 
deal of damage, ostensibly in behalf of the cause in the contest which 
they represented, but in large degree for their own benefit, and the 
persecution of those opposed to them. 

Mr. Frakes began farming for himself in 1872, and soon afterward 
traded the farm he then owned for the one he now owns and cultivates, 
which he has vastly improved and made one of the best in the town- 
ship. He has made his improvements with judgment and good taste, 
and done his farming with intelligence and skill. Every acre under 
cultivation yields good returns for the labor bestowed upon it, because 
he so manages the work that it must, and omits no effort on his part 
to bring the desired result. 

On November 3, 1872, Mr. Frakes was united in marriage with 
Miss Madeline McCoy, who was born in Chariton county, this state. 
Her parents came to Missouri in the fifties, and were early settlers in 
the locality of their home. Six children have been born of the union: 
William E., who died on December 25, 1910; Ira B., who is a farmer; 
and Ernest W., Nancy, Margaret and Charles J., all of whom are still 
living under the parental roof tree. All the members of the family enjoy 
a large measure of public esteem and all are well worthy of the regard 
in which thev are held. 



DR. DAVID F. HOWARD 

With wise forethought and judicious liberality Peter F. and Phoebe 
(Davis) Howard, the parents of Dr. David F. Howard, one of the rising 
physicians and surgeons of Brookfield, moved their family from their 
farm in Montgomery county, Missouri, to Kirksville when their chil- 



538 HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 

dren were yet young in order to give them good educational advan- 
tages. Tliey were born in Warren and Audrain counties, this state, and 
early in life became residents of Montgomery county, where the father 
engaged in farming. 

On the farm he cultivated there the doctor was born on March 3, 
1870. When he was five years old the change of residence to Kirksville 
took place, and in that city he was educated academically, attending 
first the district school and afterward the State Normal School and the 
business college there. After accomplishing the object of their resi- 
dence in Kirksville the parents moved to Brookfield, where the father 
died in 1895. The mother is still living and continues to reside in 
Brookfield. They had five children, two of whom, both sons, are living. 

The doctor's grandfather, David Howard, was long a resident of 
Warren county, and from there as his base of operations he became a 
very successful trapper and hunter. When he moved to Warren county 
from his native state of Kentucky, the whole region around him in his 
new home was a wilderness, and it gave him fine opportunities for 
carrying on his chosen occupation, but in the pursuit of it' he often had 
to defend himself and his possessions from the attacks of hostile 
Indians, who sought to get the fruits of his enterprise and who also 
resented his intrusion into their hunting grounds. But he was equal 
to the requirements. As well as winning celebrity by his success in 
hunting and trapping. He died of cholera in St. Louis in 1849 while 
on an expedition to that city for supplies. His remains were smuggled 
back to Warren county and buried there. 

Dr. Howard first came to Brookfield in 1882, and for a number of 
years made an excellent reputation as a clerk and bookkeeper, and 
finally was selected as a bookkeeper in the Linn County Bank. He 
began the study of medicine in 1898, and after a due course of prepara- 
tion in the State University, passed two years in the medical depart- 
ment of Washington University in St. Louis, from which he was gradu- 
ated in 1903. He at once returned to Brookfield and began the practice 
of his profession, in which he is still engaged, with a steadily increasing 
body of patients and a steadily rising and widening reputation as a 
physician. 

The doctor has been well located for business, being associated 
with Dr. Oven in office occupancy, and he has taken all means at his 
command to improve himself in his profession and keep abreast of its 
rapid advance. He is a diligent student of its literature and an active 
member of the county and state medical societies. He attends their 
meetings and takes an active part in their proceedings, contributing 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 539 

to their value and gaining considerable benefit from conferences with 
his professional brothers. 

Dr. Howard was married on May 18, 1892, to Miss Lena Barbee, a 
native of Linn county. They have one ,child, their daughter Ruth. The 
doctor takes an active part in the fraternal life of the community as a 
member of the Woodmen of the World, and in religious matters as a 
member of the Christian church. He is attentive to the claims of both 
his church and his lodge, as he is to all those involving the advance- 
ment of his city and county and the general welfare of their people. No 
worthy undertaking for the further development and improvement of 
the locality in which he lives goes without his energetic and helpful 
support, and all his efforts are directed by intelligence and breadth 
of view. 

Making rapid progress in his profession, widely known in the 
county, standing high in public estimation, and enjoying the cordial 
regard of a host of admiring friends, the esteem bestowed upon him 
wherever he is known is based on genuine merit, which he has shown 
he possesses by his close attention to his professional work, his high 
character as a man, his fidelity to duty in every way, and the elevated 
and progressive nature of his citizenship, which is a valuable and 
valued addition to the manhood and public spirit of Brookfield and 
Linn county. 



JOHN M. KERR 



Orphaned at the age of two years by the death of his father, and 
thereby deprived of many advantages he might otherwise have enjoyed 
in the way of education and a start in life, John M. Kerr, who is now 
one of the leading farmers of Linn county, has had to shift for himself 
from an early period, although living at home with his mother, and 
from the age of eleven to that of twenty-two with her and her second 
husband. But he was made of the proper metal for endurance, and 
took his part in the battle of life with a firm and confident spirit from 
the start. 

Mr. Kerr was born at Greenfield, Highland county, Ohio, on July 3, 
1853, and is a son of Elder and Nancy Kerr, also natives of that state. 
The father was a farmer, and a few months after the birth of his son 
John moved his family to Hancock county, Illinois, where he died in 
1855. He was the father of two sons and two daughters, and of these 
children only John M. and one brother and sister are living. His sister 



540 HISTORY OF LINX COUXTY 

is Mrs. Henry Mock, and resides in California. His brother, Andrew H., 
lives in Lincoln, Nebraska. 

About the year 1864 the mother was married a second time, uniting 
herself with Lafillet E. Fay, and the next year the family moved across 
the river into Missouri and on to Linn county, making the journey with 
teams. A new home was found on a tract of new ground in Jefferson 
township in this county, and on this a dwelling was erected and all the 
available force in the family went to work to turn the wild domain on 
which it settled into a productive farm. It was located near the village 
of Forker, and there the mother died in 1905. 

John M. Kerr remained at home until 1875, then bought seventy- 
six acres of his present farm, which now comprises 180 acres, and is one 
of the best in the township. He was twelve years old when the family 
came to the county, and the long, slow jaunt was very trying but also 
very interesting to him. Nor was it without useful lessons for him. It 
helped to teach him self-reliance, and quickened the development within 
him of that resolute determination to grapple with and conquer diffi- 
culties which has ever since been one of his prominent characteristics. 

When he started farming for himself his progress was slow and 
continued so for some time. But he held every inch he gained and used 
every additional advance for still further accretions to his power, and 
in a few years his pace became more rapid, and he was able to enlarge 
his operations. He bought additional land from time to time, until he 
secured the ownership of 180 acres, as has been noted, but all the while 
he kept on improving and enriching the whole tract, and thus adding 
to his returns. 

Early in his career as a farmer he began raising and feeding live 
stock for the markets, and he is now one of the most extensive and 
active live stock men in the county. He handles a considerable body of 
stock every year, and makes his dealings in this commodity pay him 
well. He is careful and uses good judgment at every stage of his work 
in this industry, thereby securing the best results attainable, and it 
tells to his advantage, as is shown by the high rank his output has in 
the marts of trade. 

Mr. Kerr was married in 1891 to Miss Elizabeth Bush, a native of 
Knox county, in this state. They have two children, their son Leroy 
and their daughter Beulah. The father takes an earnest interest and a 
serviceable part in the affairs of the county, is always ready to do all 
he can in aid of all commendable public improvements, and gives close 
attention to all his duties as a citizen. He is well known and highly 
esteemed. 



HISTORY OF LIXN COUNTY 541 

ABRAHAM H. READ 

(Deceased) 

For thirty-two years a resident of Linn county, and during the 
greater portion of the period one of the leading farmers and most 
esteemed citizens of Jefferson township, the late Abraham H. Read, 
who died on a small tract of land to which he had retired a few years 
before, passing away in 1892, at the age of seventy-two years, combined 
in his characteristics and make-up the thrift and frugality of the Cana- 
dian, the ingenuity and resourcefulness of the New Englander, and the 
breadth of view and enterprise of the Westerner, who dares all for his 
purpose, working on expansive lines and looking to small things only 
as matters of necessary detail that cannot be ignored but need not be 
made much of. 

Mr. Read was born near Rutland, Vermont, on January 30, 1821, 
and was a son of Loton and Elvira (Hutchins) Read, natives of Canada. 
The father was a carpenter and also followed farming to some extent, 
in a small way, as they all do in New England, for he moved his family 
to Vermont early in his married life. From Vermont he took his wife 
and offspring to Crawford county, Pennsylvania, and in that state he 
resided until his death. His father was a soldier in the American army 
during the Revolutionary War, serving to the end of the contest in a 
New England regiment, and sharing in the glory of its triumphs in the 
independence of the United States. 

Abraham H. Read was but a child when he was taken by his par- 
ents to Pennsylvania, and there he grew to manhood, working on the 
farm as he passed from boyhood to youth and from youth to maturity, 
and at the same time receiving such educational training as the district 
schools of the neighborhood in which he lived afforded. Being trained 
lo farm work, and feeling no special inclination to any other, soon after 
leaving school he engaged in farming on his own account, and he fol- 
lowed that pursuit in Pennsylvania until 1857. He was successful in 
^is operations, but he felt a strong desire for easier labor and more 
expansive returns, and determined to seek them where they were said 
vo be found. 

He had heard much of the rich lands of the West, especially of this 
itate and some of its neighbors, and this part of the country seemed to 
him to embody the fulfillment of his hopes. But before coming to Linn 
county he took up a tract of wild land in Grant county, Wisconsin, on 
which he lived and labored three years, from 1857 to 1860. In the 
spring of the year last named he crossed the great "Father of Waters" 



542 HISTOEY OF LIXN COUNTY 

and came on to this county. On liis arrival here he secured a tract 
of wild prairie in Jefferson township, and at once began to put it 
into shape for a permanent residence, and make it the nucleus of a 
large farm. 

As time passed and he prospered he bought additional land and 
improved that also, always seeking some new responsibility and field 
of enterprise for the enlargement of his estate. At the time of his death 
he owned and cultivated 350 acres of fine farm land, and had it all in 
an advanced stage of development and productiveness. Some years 
before his demise he gave up all large undertakings and moved to a 
small tract of his land near Forker, on which he died, and on which his 
widow still lives. She has reached the advanced age of ninety years, 
but is still hale, vigorous and active. She and her husband were mar- 
ried in about 1846 and by their union became the parents of four chil- 
dren, two of whom are living: Chester A., a prosperous farmer of this 
county, and Mrs. Flora A. Test, who also lives in Linn county. 

Mrs. Test was born in Pennsylvania, and reared and educated in ' 
Missouri. On November 24, 1890, she was united with Eugene Test in 
marriage, and with him engaged in managing a farm. They became 
the parents of two children by this marriage, all of whom are living. 
Erwin, the first born, was by a former marriage to Lyman Boomer, and 
is now residing in the state of Oklahoma. John A., by second marriage, 
manages the home farm for his mother; and Gladus Viola, the third, 
is now Mrs. Lewis Bennett, of Chariton county. She is admired through- 
out the township for the spirit and enterprise she has exhibited. But, 
as has been noted, her son John now relieves her of the burden to a 
large extent, and is making a good record for himself as an industrious, 
skillful and progressive farmer. 



HENRY C. STOCKWELL 

Eaising fruit for the markets on an extensive scale is a compara- 
tively new industry in Linn county, and the men who had the hardi- 
hood to inaugurate the movement for its introduction and their imme- 
diate followers in the matter are entitled to all praise. By their enter- 
prise and daring they gave a new source of commercial power to the 
county, and the farther they have since carried their operations the 
more they have augmented that power and expanded its usefulness. 

Henry C. Stockwell, of Jefferson township, one of the prominent 
farmers living in the vicinity of Laclede, is a pioneer in the business in 



HISTORY OF LINX COUNTY 643 

this locality, and has been successful in the venture to such an extent 
that he has steadily extended his plantings and enlarged his operations 
in the industry since he began to devote a portion of his fine farm to it. 
His general farming is considerable and its results are profitable, but 
his specialty in fruit culture gives his place an unusual interest, and 
makes it a resort for many who aim to follow his good example. 

Mr. Stockwell is a New Yorker by nativity, born in Orange county, 
in the great Empire State, on July 28, 1853. But, while that county is 
rich in the production of fruit, he did not remain in it long enough to 
know anything about the industry there before he left. His parents, 
Luther and Jane (Dubois) Stockwell (the father was born in Moss and 
the mother in Orange county. New Y'ork), left that county when he was 
but four years old and moved to Illinois. The father was a physician 
and practiced his profession in his native state until he left there and 
afterward in his new home in Illinois until his death. He was born 
October 28, 1812, and died July 28, 1860. The mother survived him 
eighteen years, passing away on May 29, 1878. 

They had two children, their son Henry G. and their daughter 
Mahala E., who is now the wife of P. H. Hoyer and resides in Linn 
county. The son grew from the age of four years to manhood in Illi- 
nois and obtained his education in the district schools. He assisted in 
farm work in his boyhood and youth, and so acquired a knowledge of 
the industry. And when he was ready to take up the burden of making 
a livelihood for himself, he became a farmer. To this occupation he has 
ever since adhered, his only departure from general farming being his 
cultivation of fruit. 

He continued farming in Illinois until 1900, when he came to Mis- 
souri and took up his residence in Linn county. On his arrival in this 
county he bought 120 acres of unimproved land. He has since added to 
this and now has over 675 acres, and this he has made fruitful in pro- 
duction by his enterprise and skill as a farmer, and attractive as a 
country home by his excellent judgment and good taste in planning the 
dwelling, barns and other improvements he has put on it. In erecting 
his buildings he had an eye to the future, and built with a view to 
coming needs as well as to present requirements, and so his construc- 
tions are ample for a long time to come as well as adapted to every 
present need. 

On October 10, 1889, Mr. Stockwell was united in marriage with 
Miss Rosa Vollmer. She was born in Grundy county, Illinois, and is 
a daughter of Gotfried and Anna (Meier) Vollmer, the former born in 



544 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

Germany and the latter in Switzerland. They came to the United 
States in 1870. They settled on a farm in Grundy county, Illinois, and 
later in 1878 moved to Coal City, Illinois, where the father still resides. 
The mother died a number of years ago. Mr. and Mrs. Stockwell have 
had six children, and four of them are living: Walter C, Henry D., 
Elmer L. and Vera A. They are all still members of the parental family 
cir,cle. The father is a Democrat and active in the service of his party. 
As its representative he has served on the school board for a number 
of years. He is well known and well esteemed. 



JAMES I. HAMILTON 

A native of Clay township, in this county, and now engaged in 
farming the homestead on which he was born, and on which he has 
passed the whole of his life to this time (1912) except when he was 
absent at school, James I. Hamilton has a special interest in the wel- 
fare and progress of the county, and he manifests it on all occasions by 
his earnest and intelligent support of all undertakings for the better- 
ment of the region or the increase of conveniences and advantages for 
its residents. 

Mr. Hamilton's life began on May 22, 1875, and he is a son of 
Neanian B. and Mary E. (Couch) Hamilton, the former born in Scot- 
land and the latter in Linn .county. The father was brought by his par- 
ents to Toronto, Canada, in his infancy, and soon afterward the family 
moved to Genesee county. New York. There he grew to manhood and 
obtained a good education in the district and high school convenient to 
his home. He learned the shoemaker trade and worked at it in New 
York and Boston until about 1857, when he came to this county and 
opened a shoe shop in Linneus. 

This shop he conducted until 1862, and was doing well in his under- 
taking. But the Civil War stirred his patriotism to its depths, and he 
determined to go to the defense of the Union. He enlisted in Company 

H, Missouri Volunteer Infantry, and in that regiment 

he served to the close of the war, most of the time on guard duty pro- 
tecting the railroads from destruction, and seeing but little field service 
or much of the sanguinary phase of the great sectional conflict. 

In 1867, having returned to this county, he bought 160 acres of the 
farm on which his son James now lives. The land, when he bought it, 
was in a wild and uncultivated state, and he proceeded to break it up 



HISTORY OF LIXN COUNTY 545 

and improA^e it. As his prosperity increased he bought additional land 
until he owned 480 acres, all of which he soon had under the plow and 
bringing him in large returns for his labor. He managed all his farm- 
ing operations with judgment, conducted his work with skill and intel- 
ligence, controlled his business affairs with wisdom, and became a man 
of considerable property and prominent in the affairs of the township 
and county of his home. 

His marriage with Miss Couch took place on March 16, 1872, and 
resulted in the birth of four children who grew to maturity and are still 
living. They are: James I., the immediate subject of this brief review; 
Nettie, who is unmarried; Olive, who is the wife of Jasper Van Horn, of 
this .county, and Eose, who married David A. Pittman, and is also a 
resident of Linn county. The father was a Republican in political alle- 
jgiance, but he was not an active partisan and never sought a public 
office of any kind. He died in October, 1908, but the mother is still 
living and has her home at Meadville. The grandfather, whose name 
was also James Hamilton, was born in Scotland and died in Genesee 
county, New York. He was a shoemaker by trade. 

James I. Hamilton was reared on the farm on which he now lives. 
He began his education in the district schools and completed it at the 
Chillicothe State Normal School, which he attended three years. When 
he left that institution he returned to his home and took charge of the 
farm, and he has been its manager and controlling spirit ever since. 
He follows general farming and raises and feeds cattle for the markets, 
doing both on a scale of considerable magnitude and with highly grati- 
fying results. 

On Christmas day, 1907, he was joined in wedlock with Miss Susie 
Phillips, a daughter of William D. and Malcena (Drews) Phillips, 
natives of Missouri and still active among its people and cordially 
respected by all classes of them by whom they are known. Mr. and 
Mrs. Hamilton have two children, their son James E. and daughter 
Elizabeth. The head of the house belongs to the Masonic order and 
takes an active and serviceable part in the work of his lodge in the 
fraternity. Like his father he is free from active partisanship in 
political affairs, but he never neglects the duties of citizenship, and in 
bestowing his suffrage considers only the general welfare of the town- 
ship and county without regard to political or personal claims. He is 
well and favorably known throughout the countj^ as one of its most 
enterprising and promising young farmers and one of its most reliable 
and estimable citizens in all the relations of life. 



646 HISTOEY OF LIN^^ COUXTY 

JAMES I. WOOLLEN 

Having been born and reared on a farm, and having never had any 
inclination for any other occupation, it is but natural that James I. 
Woollen, of Clay township, this county, should still be a farmer now 
when he has passed the half -century mark in life, and has made a grati- 
fying success of the industry. Nor is it surprising that he should be 
one of the most enterprising and progressive men in the business in 
this part of the county. For, as he has always regarded farming as his 
life work, he has studied it diligently and with close observation, and 
kept himself in touch with the rapid progress in the business, and at all 
times ready to secure for himself the benefits of all new discoveries in 
every department of it. 

Mr. Woollen was born in Adams county, Illinois, on January 6, 
1859, his parents at that time being residents of that county. They were 
James A. and Susanna (Borgholthous) Woollen, the former a native 
of Dorchester county, Maryland, and the latter of Holland. The father's 
life began in 1821 and the mother's in 1826. When the father was seven 
years old his parents moved to Wayne county, Indiana, where he lived 
until 1842. He then moved to Adams county, Illinois, and joined one 
of his brothers, who was living there a few miles south of Quincy. 

He was married in 1845, and lived near the Mississippi river until 
1892, part of the time in Iowa. In the year last mentioned he came to 
this county, and here he passed the rest of his life, which ended on 
August 6, 1910. The mother died here in December, 1900. They were 
the parents of ten children, five of whom, two sons and three daughters, 
are living, three of them in Linn county. The father was a Republican 
in political relations and firm in his loyalty and devotion to the prin- 
ciples of his party. 

James I. Woollen was reared to manhood in his native county and 
educated in its district schools. He began life for himself as a farmer 
there, and he has adhered to that occupation ever since. He continued 
his operations in Illinois until 1892, and then came to this county and 
bought the farm on which he now lives. It comprises 180 acres, the 
land is of excellent quality and he has improved it with good buildings 
and furnished his place with all the modern appliances required for its 
proper cultivation according to the most approved methods of the 
present day. 

His farming operations are extensive and are conducted with the 
utmost vigor and enterprise. In addition he is largely engaged in 



HISTOKY OF LINX COUXTY .317 

breeding Durham cattle aud Poland-China hogs. In this department of 
his industry his work is carried on with sedulous attention to every 
detail in all stages, and vigilant care in every way to secure the best 
results. As a consequence the products of his stables are in wide and 
general demand and have the highest rank in the markets, local and 
general. 

On October 12, 1882, Mr. Woollen was united in marriage with Miss 
Louisa S. Dickhut, a native of Adams co-unty, Illinois, where the mar- 
riage was solemnized, and is the daughter of Adolph and Augusta (Mis- 
selwitz) Dickhut, who were born in Germany and are both now 
deceased. Mr. and Mrs. Woollen have three children: Ada M., who is 
the wife of E. E. Schultz, of this county; Ethel B., who married N. J. 
Marcum and resides at McClade, in the state of Colorado ; and Adolph 
L., who is still at home with his parents. They are members of the 
Methodist Episcopal church in Meadville, and the father belongs to the 
Order of Odd Fellows and the Modern Woodmen of America in his 
fraternal relations. The people in all parts of the county know him 
well and esteem him highly for his estimable traits of character and 
genuine worth. 



HENRY MILLER 



After having farmed successfully and profitably for a number of 
years in Clinton county, Indiana, where he was reared from the age of 
two years to manhood; and served his country valiantly and faithfully 
for seven months during the expiring agonies of the Civil War, partic- 
ipating in the capture of Richmond, the last citadel of the southern 
Confederacy, which fell when General Lee surrendered at Appomattox, 
Henry Miller, now one of the prominent and prosperous farmers of Clay 
township in this county, again gave fifteen years of effort and fruitful 
service to the farming industry in the first state of his adoption. But 
since 1881 he has been a resident of this county, and one of the poten- 
tial factors in its progress and development subsequent to the time 
of his arrival here. 

Mr. Miller is a native of Ohio, born on May 30, 1840, and the son 
of Daniel and Susanna (St. Clair) Miller, the former, like himself, 
a native of Ohio, and the latter born in Pennsylvania. The parents 
moved to Clinton county, Indiana, in 1842, when their son was two 
years old, and in that county the father cleared a farm on which the 



548 HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 

family lived until 1881. In that year all the members of the household 
moved to Linn ,county, Missouri, and here the parents died, the father 
in 1883 and the mother in 1896. They had two sons and two daughters, 
all now deceased but their son Henry and his sister Margaret, who is 
the widow of Frank Ferguson, and resides in Meadville, Missouri. 

Henry Miller obtained a limited common school education in 
Clinton county, Indiana, the schools of which were of the usual type 
of the country at the early period of his boyhood. The houses in 
which they were kept were rudely constructed of hewn logs, and not 
always hewn, and furnished with slab benches and other primitive 
appliances for their purposes. Their range and methods of instruction 
were limited, and their utmost results were meager compared with 
those of the country schools of today. But even as they were, Mr. 
Miller had opportunity to attend them only during the winter season 
for a few years, the circumstan,ces of the family making it necessary 
for him to do all he could for himself and work whenever he could. 

Early in life, before he reached manhood, he began farming on his 
own account, and he continued his efforts in this line of industry until 
1865, when he enlisted in the Union army as a member of Company K, 
One Hundred and Forty-seventh Indiana Volunteer Infantry, in which 
he served seven months and was present at the occupation of Rich- 
mond, Virginia, by the Union forces, as has been stated. When he 
received his honorable discharge from the army he returned to his 
Indiana home, and on December 17, 1868, was joined in wedlock with 
Miss Mary A. Somsel, who was born in Ohio. 

They have two children, their son David, who is a Linn county 
farmer, and their daughter Susanna, who is now the wife of William H. 
Somsel and resides in Linn county. In 1881 Mr. Miller brought his 
family to this county and bought 200 acres of unimproved land, on 
which he has expended all his time and energy ever since, converting it 
into the fine farm on which he now lives. He is a Democrat in political 
relations, but has never been an active partisan or held or sought a 
public office. 

He has, however, given earnest and intelligent attention to the 
progress and improvement of his township and county, and been of 
great assistance in making them what they are. Every undertaking 
of value for their betterment has had his zealous and helpful support, 
and his services in this behalf are warmly appreciated by the people of 
every class and condition, and throughout the county he and the mem- 
bers of his family are held in the highest esteem for their genuine 
worth and usefulness. 



HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 549 

HUBERT HANSEN 

(Deceased) 

Although not a native of the United States, the late Hubert Hansen 
of Brookfield was a resident of this country almost fifty years, and 
during a .considerable portion of the time lived in this county. After 
reaching manhood he was a car repairer throughout the years of his 
active labor, except during a short time when he was engaged in farm- 
ing, and made an excellent record for the high character and great 
amount of his work when employed at his trade, and for his patriotic 
and serviceable citizenship at all times. During the last few years of 
his life he lived retired from all active pursuits, and found great 
enjoyment in the rest he had so richly earned. 

Mr. Hansen was born in Prussia, Germany, on August 14, 1829. 
He was a son of Mathias and Catherine Hansen, also Germans by 
nativity and life-long residence, never having left the Fatherland, 
although frequently urged to do so and come to America by their 
son after his arrival in the country in 1852. Soon after he reached our 
shores he located in Galesburg, Illinois, where he found employment 
at his trade and remained for a number of years. He turned his atten- 
tion to farming for a short time, but again found his trade more 
attractive and satisfactory to him, and in 1886 came to Linn county 
and located in Brookfield, where he worked for the Burlington Railroad 
Tintil he retired. Here he died on December 16, 1901, aged seventy-two 
years, and enjoying the respect and confidence of all who knew him for 
his devotion to the interest of his adopted country, his usefulness as 
a citizen and his genuine worth as a man. 

On June 5, 1856, Mr. Hansen was united in marriage with MiSs 
Mary Kummer, a native of the grand duchy of Luxemburg in Europe, 
and the daughter of Nicholas and Susanna (Daufield) Kummer, long 
esteemed residents of that country. Mr. and Mrs. Hansen became the 
parents of six children, three of whom are living, Elizabeth, Albert 
and Joseph. Elizabeth and Albert are married and each have children, 
there being five grandchildren of the Hansen household in the family 
at the time of this writing (1912). 

Mr. Hansen was a progressive and enterprising man, and showed 
his interest in the welfare and improvement of his home city in the 
most practical way. In 1888 he put up a large store building in Brook- 
field, and in 1895 prepared Hansen's addition to the city for the use 
of the people, plotting it into city lots and giving them ready sale. 
The addition contains seventy-four acres and has become one of the 



550 HISTORY OF LIXN COUNTY 

choice residence sections of Brookfield. He also took an earnest inter- 
est and an active part in local public affairs, although he had no 
political ambition and was not an active partisan politically. But 
every worthy undertaking for the progress and development of the 
community along wholesome lines of growth received his energetic, 
intelligent and effective support and the stimulus of his good example. 
In religion he was a faithful and zealous Catholic, cordial in 
loyalty to his ,church and at all times ready to do everything for its 
benefit he could. In fact, there was no duty in life to which he was 
unfaithful, or toward which he was negligent. All his activities were 
impelled by high ideals and directed to practical results of immediate 
and enduring value, and his course, although neither ostentatious or 
noisy, was true to the line of strictest rectitude and fruitful in good 
for everybody who came within its range. The whole people esteemed 
him highly and he enjoyed in a marked degree their unbounded confi- 
dence as a craftsman, a useful citizen and a thoroughly upright, hon- 
orable and enterprising man. And he lived long enough among them 
for them to have full knowledge of his worth. 



, JAMES TOOEY 

(Deceased) 

The name and memory of this pioneer of Brookfield is held in ven- 
eration by the people of the city, not only because he was one of the men 
who helped to found it and blazed the way for its subsequent progress 
and development, but also because of the service he rendered it in all of 
the forty-six years of his residence in the wilderness as he found it, 
prosperous and progressive village as he helped to make it, and thriv- 
ing city as he left it when he departed this life on November 4, 1898. 

Mr. Tooey was a native of the Emerald Isle, whose sons and daugh- 
ters have dignified and adorned every walk in life and made their mark 
in almost every part of the world, impressing their versatality and 
mental power on every civilization and contributing light, life and fruit- 
fulness to every department of human endeavor. He was born in 
County Mayo, Ireland, in March, 1832, and was a son of Augustine and 
Margrett (Buckley) Tooey, who emigrated from that country to the 
United States in 1839 and located at Allegany, New York, where the 
father died in about 1844. The mother died in Linn county in 1859. 
Our subject was a contractor in railroad construction work and moved 
about, wherever duty called him, in this country and Canada, until 1852, 




JAMES TOOEY 



HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 551 

when he brought his family to Missouri, and founded a permanent home 
in this state. 

He was associated with his brother Patrick Tooey in his contract 
work, and they helped to build canals as well as railroads, working on 
the canals mainly in the state of New York. He did everything con- 
nected with the construction and operation of a canal, even, at one 
time, driving a mule team on the tow-path in the slow progress of canal 
boats. An interest in contract work on the Hannibal & St. Joseph Rail- 
road brought him to Missouri, and he worked on that until 1860. In 
that year he opened the first real store in Brookfield and gave a start 
to its mercantile life. 

Mr. Tooey 's store, according to old records, was a two-story frame 
building, and stood on Brooks street, between Main and Livingston 
streets. In the first story the store was conducted, and the room above 
this was used for various purposes, among them the first protestant 
meeting in the village, which was held there by the congregationalists 
in the summer of 1863, and the first Sunday school, which was organized 
there by Ephraim Banning the same season. Mr. Banning acted as 
superintendent and had about twenty scholars. The books were fur- 
nished from the East. 

Mr. Tooey was also the first postmaster of Brookfield, having been 
appointed to the office in August, 1860, by President Buchanan. He 
afterward turned the office over to W. T. Snow, who served as post- 
master for more than twenty years, but Mr. Tooey continued merchan- 
dising until 1876. The next year the governor of the state appointed 
him tax collector for Linn county, the county system of collecting hav- 
ing just been adopted. At the first election subsequent to his appoint- 
ment, which occurred in 1878, he was elected to the office for a full 
term, and at the end of that in 1880 he was re-elected. He continued to 
fill this office until the county system was abandoned and the township 
system of collecting taxes was again put in operation, and he made an 
excellent record in the performance of his official duties, carefully look- 
ing after the interest of the county, and at the same time avoiding 
oppressing any of its citizens. 

On November 26, 1859, Mr. Tooey was united in marriage with 
Miss Catherine McCormick, the marriage being solemnized in Hanni- 
bal. They became the parents of eight children, three sons and five 
daughters. Two of the sons and three of the daughters are living, the 
two sons and one of the daughters being residents of Brookfield. 
Another of the daughters lives at Raton, New Mexico, and the third has 
her home in Atlanta, Missouri. 



663 HISTORY OF LINK COUNTY 

During the Civil War tiie father belonged to the Home Guards and 
did his part well in the matter of attending the meetings and drills of 
the company of which he was a member. In politics he was a firm and 
faithful member of the Democratic party, active and effective in the 
service of his party, and for many years one of its leaders in Linn 
county. His religious connection was with the Catholic church, of which 
he was a devout and consistent member from his childhood to his death. 
He was one of the leading men and most representative citizens of 
Linn county both during his residence at Thayer and after he moved 
from there to Brookfield, cheerfully bearing his full portion of all pub- 
lic burdens and giving time, effort and intelligence to the direction of 
affairs and the aid of all good agencies at work among the people for 
the advancement and improvement of this part of the state and the 
most wholesome development and application of its resources. His 
widow is still living and has her home in Brookfield, where all classes 
of the people do her reverence as one of their oldest and most estimable 
citizens, worthy of their esteem from every point of view and enjoying 
it and their good will in the fullest measure. 



EDWIN M. LOMAX 

Through a variety of occupations and business engagements, but 
all tending toward the position he now holds and the duties it involves, 
Edwin M. Lomax, president of the Linn County Bank of Brookfield, 
has risen to his present high standing in the business life of Linn 
county, and by faithful, conscientious and intelligent performance of 
all the duties of citizenship, including valuable public service for a 
number of years, he has secured his strong hold on the confidence and 
esteem of the people and won his widespread and universal popularity. 

Mr. Lomax was born on a farm near Laclede on September 30, 
1867, and is a son of H. C. and Matilda A. (Turner) Lomax, an account 
of whose lives will be found in this work. He was educated in the 
public schools of this county and worked on the farm until he reached 
the age of seventeen. He then became a clerk in the postoffice under 
J. W. Lomax, and after giving up that position passed some time in 
St. Louis. Like several other members of his family, he had a decided 
taste for the banking business, and when an opportunity ,came to grat- 
ify that taste he immediately took advantage of it, and since then he 
has never sought any other occupation. 

In 1886 he entered the Laclede National Bank as a bookkeeper and 



HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 553 

clerk. After serving the institiitiou in that capacity four years he 
moved to Brookfield to take tlie position of ,cashier of the Wheeler 
Savings Bank, which he filled until 1900. In that year he was chosen 
vice president of the Linn County Bank, and in 1906 was elected pres- 
ident of that institution. He has been president of the bank ever since, 
and it has vastly expanded its business, enlarged its operations and 
augmented its influence and importance under his management. 

The policy he has adopted in the operations of the bank is one of 
judicious enterprise and wise conservatism united. He makes the 
institution as liberal toward all public and private interests as he can 
with due regard to the safety of its depositors and stockholders, car- 
rjdng this rule into all departments of the general banking business 
it conducts, and by this means he has given it such standing that it is 
everywhere recognized as one of the soundest, safest and most service- 
able fiscal agencies in this part of the state. 

Mr. Lomax has taken an active part in public affairs also and 
been a potent factor in pushing forward the development and improve- 
ment of the city and county of his home. He has served as a member of 
the board of education in Brookfield for twelve years, and in this office 
rendered such signal and commendable service that the people turned 
almost as one man to him in looking for a suitable person to be elected 
mayor of the city in the spring campaign of 1912. He is a Republican 
in political faith and allegiance, but it was not on this account that he 
was chosen mayor. It was his high character, his broad intelligence 
and his often shown cordial and genuine interest in the welfare of the 
city and its people that induced the electorate to fix on him as the city's 
chief executive and force the official harness on him. It is quite cer- 
tain that his course in the office will fully justify the faith expressed 
in his nomination and election, and that Brookfield will be a great 
gainer thereby. 

In fraternal relations Mr. Lomax is connected with the Masonio 
Order and the Order of Elks, and in religious faith he is a Presbyterian. 
While on the school board he served as its treasurer, but every school 
under the control of the board felt the quickening impulse of his active 
mind and skillful hand, and is much the better for it. He was married 
in Brookfield on November 27, 1890, to Miss Essie M. Wanamaker, a 
native of Linn county and the daughter of Norman E. and Laura A. 
(Daulton) Wanamaker. One child has blessed the union and bright- 
ened the family hearthstone, a daughter named Laura Dale. 

From every point of view Mr. Lomax shows up strongly as worthy 
of the highest regard. He is an excellent business man and banker; 



554 HISTORY OF LIXN COUNTY 

as a public official he has won universal commendation and shown that 
he deserved it; to his fraternal obligations he is true and faithful, both 
in the lodges and in his daily life; socially he is complaisant and enter- 
taining, and in reference to the public interest and welfare he is one 
of the most zealous and energetic men in the communitj^ He takes an 
especially deep and helpful interest in the public schools, but in every 
respect he is one of Linn county's best and most useful citizens. 



JAMES T. HAMILTON 

Beginning life as a farmer's son, and remaining on the home farm 
until he reached the age of manhood ; then coming to Linn county and 
serving as railroad agent for three years; after that engaged in mer- 
cantile life as a grocer for six years, and now one of the leading lumber 
merchants of this part of the state, James T. Hamilton of Laclede has 
made his own way in the world from obscurity and very moderate 
circumstances to consequence and good standing, and has done it by 
successive stages of advancement, with slow progress at first but 
always with improvement in his condition. 

Mr. Hamilton was orphaned at the age of three years by the death 
of his father. But he practically never knew that parent at all, as the 
latter left home when the son was but one year old to seek a fortune 
for his family in the newly discovered gold fields of California. The 
care of the infant was then left wholly to the mother, but she did her 
duty by him faithfully and with every provision for his welfare she was 
able to make. He returned her devotion with equal fervor, and as 
soon as he was able gave all the assistance he could in the work of 
managing and operating the farm. 

James T. Hamilton was born in Belmont county, Ohio, on January 
24, 1848, and is a son of John F. and Margaret (Graham) Hamilton, the 
parents being, at the time of his birth well-to-do farmers in the county 
named. The father was born in New Jersey and moved to Ohio at an 
early age. About 1843 he was married to the mother, and they began 
the work of improving their domestic shrine and making provision for 
the family on the farm they occupied. The father was eager for a rapid 
advance in his fortunes, and in 1849, when the persuasive voice of 
California was thrilling the world with its golden music, he found him- 
self unable to withstand the temptation to join the host of ardent 
argonauts that was flocking to the new El Dorado. He made the trip 
by the Panama route, however, and thereby escaped the dangers and 



HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 565 

privations of the long and tiresome journey with teams across the 
plains. He did not live long after his arrival in California to pros- 
ecute his search for the wealth he hoped to secure, dying in that state 
within one year of reaching it, passing away in 1851. 

His son James T. was reared on the farm and educated at the dis- 
trict school in its vicinity. He remained with his mother until he 
reached the age of twenty-one, then came direct to Laclede in this 
county, where he has ever since resided. He arrived here in 1869, and 
during the next three years was employed by the railroad company as 
its agent in the town. At the end of the period mentioned he turned 
his attention to mercantile life and opened a grocery store. This he 
conducted until 1878, when he founded his present extensive lumber 
business, beginning on a small scale and gradually extending his opera- 
tions and the volume of his business until it became one of the leaders 
in the trafl5,c in Linn county. 

He also began early to take an interest in public affairs in the 
county, and as his business prospered and grew his influence with the 
people and his reputation among them extended to such a degree that 
in 1884 he was elected county treasurer, and at the end of his first 
term was re-elected, serving in the office until 1889. He cared more 
for his business than for public office, however, and when his second 
term as county treasurer expired, he returned to his lumber trade, and 
to that he has ever since devoted himself exclusively and with great 
enterprise and energy. 

In 1871, Mr. Hamilton w^as married to Miss Nannie Edwards, and 
two children were born of the union, only one of whom is living, Lee 
E. Hamilton, who is in partnership with his father in the lumber busi- 
ness at Laclede. His mother died in July, 1882, and her remains were 
interred in the cemetery in Laclede. In 1884, the father contracted a 
second marriage in which he was united with Miss Clara Schrock. Two 
children have followed this marriage also, Mabel and Edith, both of 
whom are living and still members of the parental family circle. They 
are ornaments to the social life of their community, and take a cordial 
interest in everything that helps to promote the enduring welfare of 
the town and county in which they have their home. 

Lee E. Hamilton, the son of the household by the first marriage of 
its head, came into being in 1873, in Belmont county, Ohio, and was 
brought to Laclede by his parents the same year. He obtained his edu- 
cation in the public schools of Linn county and at Brookfield College. 
Soon after leaving college he was taken into the business of his father 
as a partner, and he has been very energetic and progressive in helping 



556 HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 

to expand it and advance its interest ever since. He is bright in the 
business and zealous in his attention to it, and is recognized as one of 
the most active and enterprising business men in the city. 

He was married to Miss Flossie Ratchford of Unionville, Putnam 
county, Missouri. They have two children, their sons James and Wil- 
liam. Their father is a Republican in politics, and while he is not a 
particularly active partisan, his worth has been recognized and he has 
been called to the public service of the people as township collector 
and township trustee. He is a devoted member of the Methodist Epis- 
copal church, which his wife also attends. 



ADGATE L. LOOMIS 

This prominent, successful and highly esteemed farmer and sheep 
breeder of Parsons Creek township, this county, has had a varied and 
interesting career. He was born and reared on a farm in Connecticut, 
the first representative of the family in this country settled at Windsor, 
Connecticut in 1638 and put on record a title to land he owned in 1640. 
His name was Joseph Loomis, and he came to this country from Eng- 
land and located at Windsor, Connecticut. There he became a man of 
considerable importance and influence, and took an active part in the 
affairs of the infant colony which he helped to plant. 

The particular branch of the family to which the subject of this 
brief review belongs continued to reside in Connecticut until 1866, 
when he came to Missouri. His parents, Anson and Emily (Phillips) 
Loomis, moved to Missouri in 1877 and with their daughter, Mrs. 
Abell, took up their residence on a farm in this county near the present 
town of Meadville. Here the mother died on August 28, 1877, and the 
father on October 1, 1885. They were the parents of two daughters and 
three sons, all of whom are living but one, and all of the four who are 
living are residents of Missouri. The father was a native of Connecti- 
cut, a farmer in that state, and a member of the state legislature one 
term. The mother was born in Connecticut also. 

The life of their son Adgate began at Lebanon, New London 
county, Connecticut, on December 4, 1843, and there he grew to the age 
of eighteen, obtaining his education in the public schools and at Wind- 
sor Academj'. After leaving school he farmed and followed the voca- 
tion of teacher for a short time. In August, 1862, he enlisted in the 
Union army in Company C, Eighteenth Connecticut Volunteer Infan- 
try, and served two years and eight months. His regiment met with 



HISTOKY OF LIXX COUXTY 557 

disaster at the battle of Winchester, Virginia, which began on July 13, 
1863, and lasted three days. In this battle a Union for,ce of about 4,000 
under General Milroy was pitted against some 30,000 Confederates of 
General Early's corp, and most of it was forced to surrender after 
making all the resistance possible. 

After this Mr. Loomis was made captain of one of the companies 
of the Thirtieth Connecticut Colored Eegiment. He took part in the 
battle of Petersburg at the head of this company. He was fifth in 
rank at the beginning of the battle, all other officers were killed or 
disabled leaving him in command. Mr. Loomis was given command 
of the Thirtieth Connecticut Colored regiment and was in command 
of it ten months, when it consolidated with the Thirty-first United 
States Colored Troops. At regular monthly inspection he was com- 
plimented on being the best of the five regiments in the brigade. 

He was honorably discharged from the service with the rank of 
captain in 1865. 

In August, 1866, he came to this county and bought a tract of wild 
land in Clay township. He broke up and improved this land, and lived 
on it until 1871, when he moved to the farm on which he now resides in 
Parsons Creek township, and on which, also, he has made all the im- 
provements put on it. He was but twenty years of age when he was 
put in command of the colored regiment in the war. 

On August 2, 1871, Mr. Loomis was married in Missouri to Miss 
Melissa B. Hardy, a daughter of Moses D. Hardy, one of the early set- 
tlers in Linn county, this state. He was a native of Maine but came 
to Linn county in 1865. Nine children have been born of the union and 
all of them are living. They are: Emma W., who is living at Ship- 
rock, New Mexico, a teacher in Indian school; Alma E., who is the wife 
of S. D. Evans and resides in Meadville ; Lucius W., Edward A., Ida 
M., w^ho is the wife of M. P. Benson of Laclede; Edith C, who is the 
wife of Ernest E. Benson of Laclede; and Ruth and Ralph, who are 
twins. 

In addition to cultivating his farm Mr. Loomis is extensively 
engaged in raising sheep for the markets. He is always interested in 
the welfare and improvement of his township and county, and zealous 
in his efforts to promote their best interests in every way. But he does 
not take part in political contests, being independent of all party con- 
trol in his exer.cise of citizenship, and desiring nothing in the way of 
public office for himself. He and his wife are members of the Congre- 
gational church. 



558 HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY ■ 

SAVAGE & RANKIN 

This enterprising, progressive and highly rated firm, which is one 
of the leaders in the real estate and loan business in this part of the 
state, and whose members are among the most prominent and influen- 
tial business men of Laclede, is conducting a business which was 
founded in 1895 on the site which it now occupies, and which has passed 
through several hands. It has always enjoyed a good name and pros- 
pered, but it has never been conducted on so high a plane, so large a 
scale, or with such general apiJroval as the present proprietors have 
secured for it. 

The business was started in 1895 by May Jones, who carried it 
on until 1901, when he took Mr. Allen in as a partner, and the firm 
name became Allen & Jones. In 1908, B. S. Rankin bought the interest 
of Mr. Allen in the business and the firm became Jones & Rankin. On 
June 1, 1911, William S. Savage bought Mr. Jones out and since then 
the firm name has been Savage & Rankin, and the business has ex- 
panded and spread out at a rapid rate. The members of the firm are 
known throughout a large extent of the country surrounding Laclede 
as strictly upright, square and reliable men, with full mastery of their 
undertaking and all that pertains to it, extensive and accurate knowl- 
edge of property, its value, possibilities and chances of improvement, 
and all that is necessary for its development to its highest usefulness 
and productiveness. They are recognized authorities on all matters 
connected with real estate transactions, and their judgment is relied on 
and followed by hosts of persons. This is a measure of popular esteem 
and confidence which they have won by their integrity in business 
matters, and their high tone and manhood as citizens and the people 
readily accord it to them because they are known to deserve it. 

B. S. Rankin, the older member of the firm, was born in Fleming 
county, Kentucky, on July 17, 1855, and came to Missouri in 1880, locat- 
ing in Gentry county, where he remained fifteen years. He is a son 
and one of the six children of James and Kazer (Hormon) Rankin. 
The mother died on September 10, 1861, and the father in 1889. 

Mr. Rankin, the subject of these paragraphs, obtained his educa- 
tion in the common schools of his native county, and began the battle 
of life for himself at an early age. In 1895 he moved from Gentry 
county to Linn county, taking up his residence in Jefferson townshi]), 
where he was actively and profitably engaged in farming until 1908. 
He then formed a partnership with the late May Jones, and together 



HISTOIJY OF LIXN COUNTY 559 

they carried on the business in which he is now engaged until Mr. 
Savage succeeded Mr. Jones in the firm. 

On December 25, 1879, Mr. Rankin was married to Miss Jennie 
Buckley, a daughter of William Buckley, a native of Indiana. Five 
children have been born of the union, all of whom are living: Daisy 
D., who is teaching school and resides at home with her parents; Wal- 
ter D., whose home is near Springfield, Missouri; and Rorie A., Rasco 
C. and Hazel, who are also still members of the parental family circle. 

Not only because of the nature of his business, but also by reason 
of his general progressiveness and desire for the best results of prog- 
ress that can be secured for his township and county, Mr. Rankin is a 
very enterprising and public spirited man. He is an ardent and ener- 
getic supporter of everything that he believes will help to improve and 
benefit the locality in which he lives and promote the general welfare 
of its people. He is universally esteemed as one of the best and most 
useful citizens of his township and the equal of any man in the county 
in genuine merit. 



ALEXANDER A. WELSH 

For the full period of forty-six years a resident of Linn county, and 
during all of the time one of its progressive, successful and prosperous 
farmers, and also one of its most sturdy and substantial citizens, Alex- 
ander A. Welsh of Jefferson township has long been a valued contribu- 
tor to its progress and development, its industrial and commercial 
wealth and its sterling and elevated manhood. He has never been 
indifferent to its welfare or turned aside from any of its calls to duty, 
but has cheerfully given of his time and substance, mental and mate- 
rial, to aid in its improvement along wholesome lines of advancement. 

Mr. Welsh hails from the village of Glencoe, Belmont county, Ohio, 
where he was born on February 23, 1840. His parents, John and Mary 
(Sheldon) Welsh, were natives of that county, too, and his grandfather, 
Crawford Welsh, of Scotch parentage, died there in 1862, aged eighty 
years. Mr. Welsh's father, John Welsh, was a farmer and one of the 
directors of the old Ohio Central Railroad. He also served as county 
judge of his native county, and w^as a man of local prominence there. 

The mother died in the place of her birth on May 13, 1855, and in 
1866 the father and his living children moved to Missouri. He located 
in Laclede, this county, where he bought the Bell Hotel and conducted 
it until his death on Februarv 2, 1888. His second wife was Miss 



560 HISTOEY OF LINX COUXTY 

Sabina Simpson, who died in 1907. Ten children were born of the first 
marriage, six sons and four daughters. Three of the sons and one of 
the daughters are living and all reside in Linn county. The fruits of 
the second union were one son and one daughter. The sister is living 
and has her home in Missouri, thus all the living representatives of the 
family are in this state. 

Alexander A. Welsh grew to manhood in Ohio and obtained a good 
common school education there. He farmed and taught school in that 
staite until the spring of 1866, then accompanied his father and the rest 
of the family to this county. Soon after their arrival here he and his 
brother Asbury together bought a farm of 240 acres in Jefferson town- 
ship. The land was wholly unimproved and had never been cultivated. 
By the industry and skillful tillage of Mr. Welsh it has been developed 
into a model farm, well improved with good buildings and richly 
productive. 

Through the stimulus of his example and w^ise farming other land 
around his farm has also been made fruitful in productiveness and 
attractive in the improvements that have been put on it. His influence 
on the farmers of the locality began early, for he is now one of the 
oldest settlers of the township as nearly all who preceded him have 
passed away. He has passed the limit of human life fixed by the Sacred 
writer, but is still vigorous and active, and his example and influence 
are still forceful, for he has kept pace with the progress of events and 
always been up to date. 

Mr. Welsh was married in Ohio in 1867 to Miss Louisa M. Mc- 
Veigh, who was born and reared in Monroe county in that state. They 
have had four children, two of whom died in infancy. The two who are 
living are Albert D., a farmer in Jefferson township, and Cecil, who is 
also a Linn county agriculturist. Their mother is still living, venerable 
in years and in the uprightness and usefulness of her life, and revered 
throughout the locality of her home by the people of every class and 
condition. In politics Mr. Welsh is a Eepublican, but he is not an 
active partisan, and has never sought or held a political office. All the 
members of the family support the Methodist Episcopal church. 



ISAAC H. CLOUGH 

The American pioneer, in all stages of our history has been a heroic 
figure, and his achievements have in most cases been remarkable, con- 
sidering the privations, hardships and dangers amid which they have 
been accomplished. And the hardy endurance with which those priva- 



HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 561 

tions and dangers have been borne, and the all-daring courage with 
which they have been faced are worthy of all commendation. The race 
of these heroes is a fast-fleeting one, and the last of its representatives 
will be soon beyond our contact. It is well, therefore, to preserve some 
record of their lives while we have opportunity, in the pages of endur- 
ing history. 

Then, in the years to come, when the voice of song and story pro- 
claims our greatness, and admiring strangers wonder over our marvel- 
ous progress, and the glory of our civil, religious and educational insti- 
tutions, we can justify the praise and satisfy the wonder by saying: 
''See by whose hands the foundations of all this were laid, and what 
high examples were given to stimulate emulation in building as well as 
our forefathers founded!" The promoters of this work have peculiar 
pleasure, in this view of the case, in presenting to its readers a short 
account of the life of Isaac H. Clough, one of the heroic band that laid 
the foundations of civilization in this part of the country, and recording 
the deeds of the many others like him, whose life-stories will be found 
in this volume in various places. 

Isaac H. Clough is one of the prominent, enterprising and pros- 
perous farmers of Jefferson township in this county, and he came from 
the far away Atlantic coast, as it was then, to locate here. Mr. Clough 
was born near Augusta, Maine, on November 28, 1837, in the same farm 
house that his father was born in, and perhaps his grandfather also. 
He is a son of Henry C. and Elizabeth D. (Tucker) Clough, also natives 
of that state, where the father was born on December 2, 1809. They 
were farmers in Maine, and prosperous according to their day and 
location. The mother died in 1892 and the father on January 8, 1894, 
the latter at the advanced age of eighty-five. 

They were the parents of three sons and two daughters, all of 
whom are now deceased but their son Isaac and one of his brothers, who 
is still living in Maine. The paternal grandfather, James S. Clough, 
was also a native of Maine, born in 1780, and followed farming there 
until his death in 1865. He was a soldier in the War of 1812, and ren- 
dered his country good service in that contest with the mother country. 
By his marriage with Susanna Palmer he became the father of five sons 
and two daughters. The family is of Scotch ancestry and the progeni- 
tors of its American branch were pioneers in Maine, coming over in 
colonial days. 

■ Isaac H. Clough was reared to the age of eighteen in his native 
state. In 1855 he came west to Chicago and in that city worked at the 
carpenter trade for about fifteen months. On January 30, 1857, he 



562 HISTORY OF LIXN COUNTY 

arrived in this county, having made the journey by rail from Chicago 
to Palmj^ra, and from there by stage to Linneus. During the first 
year of his residence in Linn county he worked at his trade in and 
around Linneus, erecting many of the early dwellings in Linneus, 
Laclede and other parts of the county. 

He was eager, however, to return to the occupation of his fore- 
fathers, and at the end of a year began renting land and farming, but 
also continued to work at his trade, for there was a great demand for 
his craftsmanship, the progress of the county having begun in earnest 
and there being a steady influx of immigrants who had to have homes. 
He continued to rent land until 1866, and in May of that year moved to 
the farm on which he now lives. This was all unbroken prairie when 
he bought it, but he has transformed it, by his well-applied industry, 
into a fine farm, in a high state of cultivation and well improved with 
good buildings. 

Mr. Clough was married in 1858 to Miss Nancy Sensintaffar, a 
daughter of John Sensintaffar, who became a resident of Linn county 
in 1837. Seven children were born of this union, four of whom are liv- 
ing: Lucinda J., who is the wife of W. R. Sellars and resides in this 
county; Augusta M., who is living at home with her father; Jacob H., 
who is a Linn county farmer; and Ethel L., who married with S. D. 
Edwards and has her home in this county. The mother of these chil- 
dren died on October 12, 1910. The father and the other members of 
the family stand high in the county and are regarded as among its most 
sturdy, sterling and representative residents. 



BENJAMIN F. GRIFFIN 

(Deceased) 

The late Benjamin F. Griffin of Jefferson township, who departed 
this life on September 19, 1909, was a well known farmer of Linn 
county, in which he passed nearly forty years of his life, having become 
a resident of it in 1870. He was seventy-six years of age when he died, 
and was universally revered as one of the patriarchs of the township in 
which he had so long lived and labored. Throughout that long record 
his life was an open book before this people, and there was not a stain 
on any of its pages, nor was there one which was not filled with a rec- 
ord of fidelity to duty and integrity and straightforwardness in all his 
dealings. 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 563 

Mr. Griffin was a Canadian by nativity, born in Hastings county, 
province of Ontario, on November 11, 1833. His parents were Stephen 
and Lyna (Hazelton) Griffin, who emigrated from New York and 
located in Ontario. He was reared on a farm and educated in the com- 
mon schools, and himself followed farming in his native land until 
1859. In that year he moved to Knox county, Illinois, and there he 
farmed until 1870, when he came to Linn county, Missouri, and bought 
the farm of 100 acres on which he died, and which is still occupied\y 
his widow. 

In 1864 Mr. Griffin enlisted in Company H, Thirty-sixth Illinois 
Volunteer Infantry, in which he served until the close of the Civil War. 
His regiment was a part of the Army of the Cumberland, and took part 
in some of the hardest fighting of the war. Mr. Griffin was in the 
terrific battles of Franklin and Nashville, and also in many minor 
engagements, but he escaped without a wound and was never taken 
prisoner during the whole of his service in the army. 

When he was released from military service Mr. Griffin returned to 
his home in Knox county, Illinois, where he remained, actively engaged 
in farming, until 1870. He then determined to gratify a longing he had 
felt for years to try his hand at farming in Missouri, and with this end 
in view he came to Linn county, and here he passed the remainder of 
his days, dying on September 19, 1909, as has been stated. 

Prior to coming to this country, however, that is, on February 23, 
1870, Mr. Griffin was united in marriage with Miss Sarah E. Hurlbutt, 
a daughter of Asa and Mary (Jones) Hurlbutt, of Knox comity, Illinois. 
Three children were bom of the union: Alice A., who is now deceased; 
Edith E., who married with S. W. Ours of Brookfield and resides in 
that city; and Irwin H., who is still living with his mother on the paren- 
tal homestead and managing its cultivation for her. 

Mr. Griffin, the father, belonged to the Grand Army of the Repub- 
lic, and was a devout member of the Methodist Episcopal church. He 
was a wise and energetic farmer, a public spirited and progressive citi- 
zen and a sternly upright and straightforward man. The people around 
him respected him for his genuine worth and high character, and 
admired him for his general intelligence, enterprise in the management 
of his farm and the elevated manhood he exhibited in all the relations 
of life. His widow and children are also held in high esteem for the 
same sterling qualities that characterized him, and for many admirable 
traits of their own. They are widely known and in all parts of the 
county, are well thought of and enjoy a very agreeable popularity. 



564 HISTOEY OF LIXN COUNTY 

HENRY EHRICH 

Born, reared and educated in Prussia in the German empire, and 
there, too, trained in the handicraft of a tailor, Henry Ehrich, one of 
the well known farmers of Jefferson township in this county, turned 
from both his native land and his chosen occupation under the allure- 
ments of the open-handed bounty and freedom of opportunity offered 
by the rich farming lands of the Mississippi valley in this country. He 
came with the expectation of bettering his prospects and winning an 
estate, and he has not been disappointed in the realization of his hopes. 

Mr. Ehrich 's life began on Christmas day, 1855, amid the sturdy 
yoemanry of that historic land which, under the lead of Frederick the 
Great, astounded the world by withstanding the force of all Europe 
combined to crush it. He is a son of Christian and Christina (Traue) 
Ehrich, also natives of Germany. The father was a tailor and wrought 
faithfully at his trade until his death in 1883. The mother is still liv- 
ing. They were the parents of three sons and one daughter, and all of 
the children but one of the sons now reside in the United States. 

The paternal grandfather, whose name was also Christian Ehrich, 
like his son and his grandson, was a tailor. But he was also a soldier 
in the Prussian army and fought in the wars of his country against 
Napoleon. In one of the great battles of those contests he was wounded, 
and soon afterward he was discharged from military service with hon- 
orable mention. He died in his native land at a good old age and 
universally respected. 

Henry Ehrich grew to manhood and learned the tailor trade under 
the instruction of his father. He followed his craft in his native land 
until the death of his father in 1883, and then came to the United 
States. He located first in Adams county, Indiana, and after farming 
there for a few months, moved to Iowa, reaching that state in 1884, and 
remaining in it on a farm which he owned until 1902. He prospered 
in his farming operations, but ever felt a longing for the region farther 
west. 

In 1902 he determined to gratify this longing, and sold his Iowa 
farm and other interests in that state, and moved to Linn county, 
Missouri. On his arrival in this county he bought a farm of eighty 
acres of land near Laclede, and on that he has ever since made his 
home. He has brought his farm to a high state of productiveness by 
skillful cultivation of it, and it is enriched with good modern buildings 
of every kind needed for its purposes and equipped with every appli- 
ance of the most approved type for working it. He has made it, in fact. 



HISTORY OF LINX COUNTY 565 

a valuable up-to-date farm and it is a creditable monument to his vigor, 
enterprise and progressiveness as a farmer and his taste and good judg- 
ment as a builder. 

Mr. Ehrich is a Republican in politics but not an active partisan. 
He is a member of the Methodist Episcopal church and the Independent 
Order of Odd Fellows, and takes a cordial interest in the progress and 
welfare of both. On March 3, 1887, he was married in Iowa to Miss 
Levina Kent, a native of that state. They have no children of their 
own but are rearing an adopted son whose name is William, and who 
is now attending school and assisting in the work of the farm. The 
head of the house is a good citizen with an active, practical and helpful 
interest in all that pertains to the welfare of his township and county, 
and the progress and improvement of their residents. The people of 
the township have a high regard for him as a man and citizen, and he 
deserves it. 



A. C. MOORE 



A farmer in times of peace and a valiant Union soldier during a 
portion of the Civil War, A. C. Moore, one of the enterprising, pro- 
gressive and prosperous farmers of Jefferson township in this county, 
has demonstrated his devotion to his country and his abiding interest 
in its welfare in ways whose force and meaning cannot well be over- 
estimated, and which leave no doubt of the sincerity and high quality 
of his patriotism, or his willingness to put it to any test that may be 
required. 

Mr. Moore is a native of Guernsey county, Ohio, where he was born 
on October 10, 1845. His parents, John and Nancy (Waller) Moore, 
were natives of Virginia and died in Ohio, where they were engaged 
in farming many years. The father was a soldier in the Mexican War. 
Of the five children born of their union, two sons and three daughters, 
three are living, and in their several localities are exemplifying in 
their daily lives the most sturdy and sterling traits of American 
citizenship. 

The family has been a martial one from the beginning of its history 
in this country. A. C. Moore's great-grandfather was a soldier in the 
Revolutionary War, and even before it began. He was at Fort Neces- 
sity with General Washington in 1754-5, and subsequently served under 
him in the long struggle against Great Britain which ended in the 
independence of the United States and the formation of our present 
government. After a long record of usefulness to his country in vari- 



566 HISTORY OF LIXX COUNTY 

ous lines of endeavor he died at an advanced age in Virginia. Eepre- 
sentatives of the family also took part in the War of 1812. 

A. C. Moore was reared to manhood and educated in the state of his 
nativity. He was a peaceful and productive farmer there until the 
Civil War was in full progress and threatening the integrity of the 
Union far more seriously than was at first supposed it ever ,could, and 
he then enlisted in the army raised for the defense of the country from 
dismemberment, entering Company I, Eighty-fifth Ohio Volunteer In- 
fantry. At the end of his first term of enlistment he was re-enrolled in 
the One Hundred and Seventy-second regiment, in which he served to 
the close of the war. He took part in the battles of Shrub Oak Moun- 
tain and Cumberland Gap, and also in many engagements of a minor 
character. 

In 1866 he came to Missouri to live, and passed six years in Pettis 
county, then moved to Linn county in 1872. Since then he has farmed 
and taught school in this county, making a good record in each avoca- 
tion and winning the respect, confidence and good will of the people 
around him in both. He is a Eepublican in his political party allegiance, 
but is not an active partisan, although always earnestly interested in 
the welfare of his township, county and state, and ardently desirous of 
seeing the best interests of the whole country promoted and advanced 
at all times. 

Mr. Moore was first married in Ohio in 1865 to Miss Mary A. Gray, 
and by this marriage became the father of five children, all of whom are 
now residents of the state of Oklahoma. They are: Frank W., who is a 
farmer in that state; Nettie A., who is the wife of Wm. Watson; Nancy 
J., who is the wife of Jess Foster; Maud S., who is the wife of Edward 
Moore; and James L., who is a farmer. The father's second marriage 
took place in 1900, and was with Miss Alma Shoemaker, a native of 
Chariton county, Missouri. They have two children, their sons Harry 
E. and Virgil L. 



THOMAS O'NEILL 

Having been connected with the railroad service in this part of the 
country during the whole of his mature life, many years as a telegraph 
operator, and since 1878 as telegrapher and express, freight and ticket 
agent at St. Catharine, and having been all the time studiously attentive 
to his duties and generous in imparting his knowledge to others who 
were seeking to qtialify themselves for similar work, Thomas O'Neill has 





THOMAS O'NEILL 



HISTORY OF LINN COUXTY 567 

been a very useful man to the pubic and of great and enduring benefit 
to scores of individual youths who were beginning their struggle for 
advancement among men and acquiring the necessary knowledge for 
their progress. 

Mr. O'Neill is a native of Lafayette, Tippecanoe county, Indiana, 
where he came into being on April 27, 1853. He is a son of William and 
Sophia (Mitchell) O'Neill, who were born, reared, educated and mar- 
ried in County Monaghan, province of Ulster, Ireland, and came to the 
United States in 1851. The father was born on December 24, 1830, and 
died on November 27, 1896. His parents were William and Catharine 
(Comiskey) O'Neill, and his father died when he, the son, was but one 
year old. The infant was reared to manhood in his native land and, 
obtained a common school education there. 

After reaching the required age he served three years in the Royal 
Irish Constabulary, and also passed a year and a half traveling through 
Scotland, securing a good knowledge of that country. After his arrival 
in America he was engaged in railroad construction work in various 
parts of Indiana and Illinois, and also kept a hotel for a time at Coats- 
burg in Adams county, in the latter state. In 1861 he moved his family 
to this county and located at St. Catharine, where he passed the remain- 
der of his days keeping a hotel, railroading and dealing in live stock. 
The mother died on February 25, 1888. They were the parents of 
seven sons and one daughter, five sons of whom are living, three of 
them in Linn county, one in Clarence, Missouri, and one in St. Louis. 

Thomas O'Neill was eight years of age when his parents located at 
St. Catharine. He passed the rest of his boyhood and his youth at that 
place attending private schools, in which he obtained a good education. 
At the age of twenty-one, having acquired a mastery of telegraphy, he 
entered the employ of the Hannibal & St. Joseph Railroad as operator 
at St. Catharine, and has been so employed there ever since, except 
during three years which he passed at other points along the line. In 
1878 he was also appointed agent for the railroad company at St. Cath- 
arine, and this position he has held continuously from the time of his 
appointment to it. 

During his occupancy of the post of telegraph operator he has 
instructed and trained 226 students in telegraphy in his office, giving 
them all the best instruction he was capable of, and making of many of 
them first class operators, the training being the best attainable and 
the result of it depending largely on the readiness, quickness and intelli- 
gence of its recipient, for it was equally available and judicious for all. 



568 HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 

Mr. O'Neill's faculties have not, however, been devoted solely to 
the railroad business. He served nine years and a half as postmaster 
of St. Catharine, and has given considerable attention to farming and 
dealing in live stock, still owning and cultivating the old family home- 
stead. He also served as clerk to Hon. Walter Brownlee, the member 
from Linn county during the last session of the state legislature, and 
has been a member of the local school board and a justice of the peace 
for a number of years. 

Mr. 'Neill was married on September 26, 1880, to Miss Eva Stolp, 
a native of Whiteside county, Illinois. They have two sons and one 
daughter : Edward P., who is now engaged in business in Kansas City, 
Missouri; William 0., who is at this time agent at St. Catharine; and 
Pauline C, who is still living at home with her parents. All the mem- 
bers of the family have lofty ideals of usefulness and great energy in 
working toward them. 

In politics Mr. 'Neill has been a Democrat from his youth, and for 
a number of years one of the leaders of his party in this county. He is 
an energetic but judicious worker for its welfare at all times, and has 
great influence and effectiveness with the people, as he is universally 
popular, and so conducts himself, in political and all the other affairs 
of life, as to retain his strong hold on the confidence and esteem of the 
public and deserve the regard and good will of all classes, always seek- 
ing to promote the public weal and secure the best results of all activi- 
ties for his township and the county in general. He is truly patriotic 
and public-spirited in all his efforts, whatever may be the conditions 
involved. 

He was reared in the faith and teachings of the Catholic church 
and is one of its most devoted and loyal adherents. At the same time 
he is tolerant of the views and convictions of other men, and ready at 
all times to aid any good cause, no matter w^hat its origin may be. In 
fraternal life he is connected with the Knights of Columbus and the 
Woodmen of the World, and both he and his wife are zealous members 
of the Order of Good Templars. Although tracing his ancestry from 
the 'Neill stock of the old kings of Ulster, he never speaks of this fact, 
and is in all respects a devotedly loyal, patriotic and high-minded 
American citizen, thoroughly democratic in his views and earnestly 
interested in the welfare of the masses of the people and the general 
improvement of their conditions of life. All American institutions 
have his unwavering support, especially those in which the enduring 
good of the plain people of the country is involved. 



HISTORY OF Ll^N COUNTY 5G9 

WILLIAM L. SENSINTAFFAR. 

The family name borne by the interesting subject of this brief 
review appears as early as 1837 in the history of Linn county, and it 
runs through the local chronicles of all the subsequent years. In that 
year Jacob and Nancy (Helonodolar) Sensintaffar came to the county 
from their native home in Tazewell .county, Virginia, and cast in their 
lot with the founders of civilization in this region. They were of the 
Ijroper caliber for pioneers, and showed it first by making the trip with 
wagon teams, long, wearying and dangerous as it was, and they showed 
it subsequently by the whole course of their lives on the frontier. 

They were the grandparents of William L. Sensintaffar, and they 
took up the farm of 160 acres on which he now lives on a soldier's 
claim granted by the government. Jacob Sensintaffar also brought his 
father with him, and thus four generations of the same house have 
dwelt on the same farm in Linn county, which its present owner and 
occupant is peopling with the fifth. This is a very unusual if not a 
unique experience in a locality comparatively so new as this county. 
The grandmother did some of the first spinning and weaving in the 
county, and members of the family have, at various times, been the 
leaders in other good movements. 

William L. Sensintaffar was born on the farm which he now owns 
on December 26, 1866, and is a son of Rufus and Harriet E. (Culbert- 
son) Sensintaffar, the former born in Tazewell county, Virginia, and 
the latter in Shelby county, Missouri. The father was brought to Linn 
county by his parents when he was but three years old, and the farm 
was then first occupied. He grew to manhood on it, lived on and 
farmed it to the end of his days, and died on it in 1889 and he and wife 
are buried on it. The remains of the grandparents of the present occu- 
pant, and those of his great-grandfather, are buried on it. By all its 
associations it is, therefore, hallowed ground to him, and he does him- 
self credit by retaining it in his possession. 

During the Civil War the father served four years in the Confeder- 
ate army under General Sterling Price. He was in the campaign in the 
Southwest and saw a great deal of active service, taking part in the 
battle of Lexington, Missouri, and all the engagements of the Red 
Biver region. He was married in Linn county in 1866, but death robbed 
him of his wife in 1883. They were the parents of seven children, five 
eons and two daughters, and six of their offspring are living, but only 
two of them are residents of Linn county. Their father was one of 
two sons born to their grandparents, who also had four daughters. All 



570 HISTOEY OF LI^'N COUNTY 

six are now deceased. The first representative of the family in America 
came to the United States in 1765 from Germany and settled in Penn- 
sylvania. Two of his sons afterward moved to Virginia, and now its 
representatives are to be found in many states in the different sections 
of the Union. 

The present owner of this interesting family homestead has passed 
the whole of his life to this time (1912) on it, and obtained his educa- 
tion in the country schools in its vicinity. His energies and his years 
have been employed in farming the land of his fathers, and he has 
never had or sought any other vocation. The spirit of improvement 
planted on the place by them has been his inspiration also, and has 
impelled him to keep pace with the progress of events and the improve- 
ments in farming, and he is regarded as one of the most enterprising 
and up-to-date farmers in the county, as well as one of the most intelli- 
gent and discriminating. 

On September 27, 1888, Mr. Sensintaffar was married to Miss Mol- 
lie E. Moss, a daughter of Luke and Rebecca (See) Moss of Shelby 
county, Missouri, where they were early settlers. Five children have 
been born of the union, and all of them are living and still members of 
the parental family circle. They are : Olive Lillian, Pauline R., Naomi 
L., Walter W. and Robert M. They are all recognized as persons of 
genuine worth and wherever they are known they are esteemed as valu- 
able members of their own community and desirable additions to the 
manhood and womanhood of Linn county and the state of Missouri. 

In his political faith and allegiance Mr. Sensintaffar is a Democrat, 
but, while he is at all times desirous of the success of his party, because 
he is a firm believer in its principles, he has never sought or desired 
any of the honors or emoluments it has to bestow for himself. The 
substantial and enduring welfare of his township and county is all he 
desires or seeks through local public affairs, and he is willing to leave 
the administration of them to those who have a taste for it. He is quiet 
and unostentatious in his manner of living and his general disposition, 
but he is sterling in his citizenship and manhood, and is universally 
regarded as being so and esteemed accordingly. 



JOSEPH A. DODD 

Although not a native of Linn county Joseph A. Dodd, one of the 
prominent farmers and live stock men of Jefferson township, has lived 
in the county since he was one year old or less, and has mingled freely 
^with the people here, taken part in all their activities, made their inter- 



IIISTOBY OF LINX COUNTY 5;i 

ests liis own, and been in every respect zealously and practically one 
of tliem. He received liis education in Linn county schools, drew bis 
stature and bis strength from its soil, acquired all his social training 
in association with its residents, and has devoted all the years of bis 
life from boyhood to expanding its industrial, mercantile, commercial 
and political power. He is therefore as much a Linn county man as if 
he were a native among its people, and this is the way he feels about the 
matter. 

Mr. Dodd was born in Calloway county, Missouri, on April 29, 1854, 
and is a son of Joseph and Sarah J. (Jordan) Dodd, who came to this 
state from Ljmchburg, Virginia, in 1845, making the journey with 
teams, which at that time was an undertaking of great magnitude and 
beset with peril almost all the way through. It required great fortitude 
and endurance, and even at the best was awfully wearying to both body 
and mind. But these persons were resolute and went through the 
ordeal without flinching, and when they reached their destination were 
ready for the new trials that awaited them. 

They located in Calloway county and remained there until 1855, 
when they moved to Linn county. The father bought 420 acres of land 
on the boundary line between this and Chariton counties, and estab- 
lished his family on it. The land was wild and raw, untouched by the 
plow and wholly ignorant, as yet, of the persuasive hand of the sys- 
tematic husbandman. Mr. Dodd broke up the land, improved it with 
comfortable buildings and reduced it to a considerable degree of pro- 
ductiveness, then sold it in 1867. In August of that same year he died. 
The mother survived him fifteen years, passing away in 1882. They 
were the parents of ten children, five sons and five daughters, all of 
whom are now deceased but Joseph A. and his sister, Mrs. S. A. Henley, 
of Laclede. The parents were members of the Baptist church and 
assisted in putting up the first church edifice for that sect in this part 
of Missouri. 

Joseph A. Dodd grew to manhood in the neighborhood of his pres- 
ent residence and obtained his education in the primitive schools of 
his boyhood here. The schoolhouses were then rudely constructed of 
logs and furnished with slab benches, and their course of instruction 
and methods of teaching were in keeping with their equipment. But 
•they turned out rugged and sturdy men and women, fitted for the 
duties before them, and with solid and serviceable attributes just suited 
to the work of laying the foundations of a great state and one of its 
best counties. He assisted his father in breaking up and improving 



573 HiSTOiJY OF LIXX COUNTY 

the farm, and remained with his mother until her death, then began 
farming on his own account. 

In his youth and young manhood he was a great hunter, and in 
1873 went to Kansas on a buffalo hunting expedition that lasted six 
months. In his later years he has indulged in the ,cliase but sparingly, 
but he still enjoys it with all his old time zest and enthusiasm. The 
farm he now owns and cultivates comprises over 200 acres of excellent 
land, and he farms it with skill and intelligence, carrying on general 
^farming operations with very gratifying returns for his labor. In 
addition, he is an extensive breeder of Shorthorn cattle and White 
Chester hogs. He has a good modern dwelling on his farm and all the 
other improvements are of present-day types, ample in size for their 
purposes and convenient in arrangement for what they have to house. 

In politics Mr. Dodd is a pronounced Eepublican, but he has never 
held a political office or desired one, although he is loyal to his party 
and zealous in its service. Fraternally he is connected with the Ancient 
Order of United Workmen. On January 18, 1880, he was united in 
marriage with Miss Eliza J. Benway, a daughter of Moses and Eose 
(Grappott) Benway, the former a native of Canada and the latter of 
the state of New York. They settled in this county in 1868. 

Mr. and Mrs. Dodd have six children: Mabel E., who is now the 
wife of Walter Sanders and resides in Chariton county; Osceola, who 
is living at home with the parents; Joseph, Jr., who is also still a mem- 
ber of the parental family circle; Edna, who is the wife of Clyde Day 
and also lives in Chariton county; and Moses B. and Clarence A., who 
are also still living at home. Mr. Dodd is well known throughout the 
county and is cordially esteemed in all parts of it as an excellent 
farmer, an upright man and a progressive and useful citizen from every 
point of view. 



HENRY F. ENGLEHART 

Born in the state of New \''ork and now a resident of Missouri; 
his father a native of Sweden and his mother of Pennsylvania; a school 
boy until he reached the age of eighteen, and then a soldier in defense 
of the Union to the close of the Civil War, and present in some of the 
most important engagements of the momentous and sanguinary con- 
flict; and ever since "the battle flags were furled" an industrious and 
fruitful worker in the domain of peaceful productiveness, Henry F. 
Englehart, now one of the leading farmers of Jefferson township in this 
county, has had variety enough in location and pursuits to satisfy the 



IllSTOEY OF LI?^N COUNTY 873 

most exacting. It must be said to his credit, however, that no matter 
where he was located or what occupation he was engaged in, he has 
always met the utmost requirements of his duty and performed it to 
the best of his ability. 

Mr. Englehart was born in Niagara county, New York, on February 
27, 1846, and is a son of Francis A. and Lydia (Shuck) Englehart, the 
former a Swede by nativity and the latter a Pennsylvanian. The father 
was born in Stockholm, the capital of his native country, and began 
making his own way in the world as a cabin boy on ocean going vessels 
at the age of twelve. He followed the sea twelve years, and during that 
period saw many countries and a great variety of manners and customs 
among men. 

In 1843 he located in Niagara county. New York, and engaged in 
farming there. The next year he was married, and settled down to the 
uneventful routine of tilling the soil as a permanent occupation, vainly 
imagining that his days of excitement and thrill in life were over. But 
soon after the Civil War began he enlisted in Company H, Sixteenth 
New York Volunteer Infantry, and thus entered on another .career full 
of tragedy and ending in disaster to him. His regiment was early in 
the field and in the midst of the hottest engagements. At the battle of 
South Mountain, Maryland, in September, 1862, his right arm was shot 
off, and he was soon afterward honorably discharged from the army. 
He returned to his New Y^ork home and there he died in 1908. The 
mother died in 1863. They had three sons, all of whom are living, one 
in the state of New Y^ork, one in Minnesota, and Henry F. in Missouri, 
Linn county. 

Henry F. was reared to the age of eighteen in his native state and 
obtained his education there. In 1864, following the example of his 
valiant father, he enlisted in the Union army, in Battery M, First New 
York Light Artillery, and duty led him also into the midst of 
the carnage and often between unrolling columns bent on each otluM '- 
destruction. He took part in the battles of Resaca, Buzzard's Roost, 
Kenesaw Mountain, Peach Tree Creek, Big Shanty and Pumpkin Vine 
Creek, Georgia, the siege of Atlanta, and many smaller engagements. 
During the siege of Atlanta he was taken ill and missed a portion of 
the fighting. On May 30, 1865, he was honorably discharged from llio 
service and returned to his New York home, where he remained iir.ti; 
1868. 

In that year he came to Missouri and located first in Caldwell 
county, where he passed a number of years. He then spent three years 
in Colorado, and in 1885 settled in Linn county. For a time after his 



574 HISTORY OF LIXX COUXTY 

arrival in this county he rented land and farmed it as a tenant, then 
bought the fine farm of 127 acres in Jefferson township on which he 
now lives. He has since devoted his time and efforts to its cultivation 
and improvement, and w^ith its great fertility, its choice lo,cation and 
its good buildings of modern types, it has become one of the most 
valuable of its size in the county, or, indeed, in this part of the state. 

On September 9, 1884, Mr. Englehart was united in marriage with 
Miss Mary E. Johnson, a native of Noble county, Ohio, and the daugh- 
ter of James and Margaret (David) Johnston, who came to Missouri 
to reside in 1866, selecting Linn county as their home, and ending their 
days here, Mr. and Mrs. Englehart have five children: Marcus J., 
Margaret, Francis A., Alva F. and Alice G. Francis is a cadet in the 
United States Military Academy at West Point, New York, which he 
entered in 1909. 

In political faith and allegiance Mr. Englehart is a pronounced and 
unwavering Republican. He cast his first vote for our martyred pres- 
ident, Abraham Lincoln, in 1865. Being a soldier in the field at the 
time. He is a member of the Grand Army of the Republic and all the 
members of the family belong to the Methodist Episcopal church. Mrs. 
Englehart saw this portion of Missouri when it was all almost unbroken 
prairie, and she and her husband have done their whole duty in help- 
ing to bring about the improvements with which she is now so highly 
gratified. They are excellent citizens, and all classes of the people 
esteem them as such. 



HENRY C. BARGAR 

Well known throughout Linn county as one of its prominent and 
successful farmers and extensive breeders of Shorthorn cattle, and also 
standing high in the regard of the people as a progressive and enter- 
prising citizen of fruitful public spirit and strong local patriotism, 
Henry C. Bargar of Parsons Creek township has reached his elevation 
through no favors of Fortune or specially propitious circumstances, but 
strictly and solely on his merit and the good work he has done for 
himself and his township and county. He has been a resident of Linn 
county for over forty-three years, and is therefore one of its oldest set- 
tlers now living. His whole career among this people has been credita- 
ble to him and beneficial to them. 

Mr. Bargar was born in Harrison county, Ohio, on November 15, 
1840, and grew to manhood and obtained his education in that state, 
attending the district school in the neighborhood of his home in the 



HISTOPiY OF LINN COUNTY 575 

winter and working on his father's farm in the summer. He is a son of 
John and Eliza (Gatchel) Bargar, natives of Chester county, Pennsyl- 
vania. They moved to Ohio early in their married life and for a num- 
ber of years lived in Harrison county, then moved to Tuscarawas 
county in the same state, where their lives were ended on their farm. 

Besides being a farmer the father was also a blacksmith, and he 
wrought diligently at his trade for some years and then bought a farm. 
Four sons and four daughters were born of his marriage, and of the 
eight six are now living, three of them in Linn county. He was a good 
farmer and a skillful mechanic. As a citizen and a man he was also 
estimable in all the relatione of life and strictly upright in all his deal- 
ings with his fellow men. The mother was a woman of superior excel- 
lence and force of character, and both stood high in the regard and 
good will of everybody who knew them. 

Henry C. Bargar has been loyal and fervent in his devotion to the 
Union from his boyhood, and he has shown his devotion in peace and 
war. In October, 1861, when he was not yet of age, he enlisted in Com- 
pany E, Fifty-first Ohio Volunteer Infantry, to aid in saving^the coun- 
try from being torn asunder, and he still bears the marks and feels the 
effect of his service in the army. His regiment was first in the Army of 
the Ohio, then in the Army of the Cumberland, and afterward in that 
of the Tennessee. In these commands he took part in the battles of 
Perryville, Kentucky, and Stone Eiver. In the latter he was shot 
through the right leg, and in consequence of the wound was off duty 
for six months. 

On his return to the service he participated in the Tullahoma cam- 
paign, and the battles of Chickamauga, Lookout Mountain, Missionary 
Ridge and all those of the Atlanta campaign. His regiment was then 
returned to Tennessee and had active work in the terrible battles of 
Nashville and Franklin. In April, 1865, when General Lee surrendered 
at Appomattox, Mr. Bargar was in eastern Tennessee, and soon after 
that decisive event he was discharged from military duty and returned 
to his old home in Ohio, where he remained until 1869, again engaged 
in farming. 

In the year last mentioned he became a resident of this county, 
locating at once on the farm he now owns and cultivates in Parsons 
Creek township. This was nearly all wild and unbroken land when he 
took possession of it, and he has devoted all his subsequent years to 
its cultivation and improvement, making it into a model farm in skill 
of tillage, amplitude and attractiveness of buildings and other equip- 
ment, and bounty of productiveness. And he has done all this in spite 



576 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

of the fact that he has been for years a great sufferer at times from his 
old army wound and other effects of his military service. 

Mr. Bargar was married in Ohio in 1866 to Miss Mary A. Laffer, 
who was born and reared in the state in which she was married. Eleven 
children have been born of their union, and ten of them are living: 
Alice, who married W. H. Robbins and resides in Linn county; Ella, 
who is the wife of Wm. Terwillagar, and abides with him in Oregon; 
Ida, the wife of Howard M. Thompson of Parsons Creek township, a 
sketch of whom appears elsewhere in this volume; Jennie, who is the 
wife of Archabald Matthews, and also a resident of Linn county; Aggie, 
who married with John Lomax of this county; Lavina, who is the wife 
of William Jackson, and has her home in Livingston county; John, who 
is a resident of California; Joseph M., who is in business in Kansas 
City, this state; Thomas, who is a Linn county farmer; and Standly M., 
who is yet at home with his parents. 

Mr. Bargar 's political affiliation is with the Republican party, but 
he has never been an active partisan or sought or desired a public 
office. Fraternally he is a zealous member of the Grand Army of the 
Republic, and in religious matters he leans toward the Methodist Epis- 
copal church, of which his wife is a member. In the vast progress and 
improvement of Linn county since he first saw it he has borne a zealous 
and serviceable part, and he is now regarded, for what he is and what 
he has done, as one of the county's best and most serviceable citizens. 



HOWARD M. THOMPSON 

One of the rising young farmers of Parsons Creek township, and 
active and serviceable in all matters pertaining to the progress and 
improvement of his township and county, Howard M. Thompson has 
demonstrated his merit to the people around him in many ways and 
they esteem him in accordance with it. He has a special interest in 
Linn county and its residents, for he was born in it, drew his stature 
and his strength from its soil and has mingled actively and helpfully 
in its industrial and civic life from his boyhood, and in a forceful and 
influential way from the dawn of his manhood through all the subse- 
quent years of his life. 

Mr. Thompson's life began in Meadville on June 27, 1876. He is 
a son of Permenis M. and Nanny J. (Drummond) Thompson, the former 
a native of Ohio, and the latter of Missouri. The father was always a 
farmer in times of peace, but when armed resistance threatened the 



HISTORY OF LINX COUXTY 577 

continuance of the Union lie became a soldier, enlisting in the 
Second Oliio regiment and serving throughout the Civil War. He bore 
the marks of his valor and fidelity to his grave, having been wounded 
in one of the terrible battles of the momentous conflict, and also having 
been taken prisoner and suffered all the horrors of confinement in 
Andersonville prison. 

After the end of his military service he sought a new field of enter- 
prise in the yet undeveloped West, coming to Linn county, Missouri, in 
1866, and buying a tract of wild land in Parsons Creek township. He 
located on this land and devoted the remaining years of his life to its 
cultivation and improvement, living on it until within a year or two of 
his death, which occurred at Laclede on February 26, 1906. He and the 
mother were married in Missouri and became the parents of five sons 
and two daughters, all of whom are living but one of the sons. The 
mother is also still living and has her home in Laclede. 

Their son Howard was reared and educated in this county, and has 
been connected with farm work from his boyhood. He worked on his 
father's farm while attending school and for some years after complet- 
ing his education, and since leaving that has been continuously occu- 
pied in cultivating a farm on his own account. He has been a diligent 
student of the science of agriculture in both theory and practice, and 
a judicious and discriminating observer of experimental operations 
and their results. By this means he has become one of the best farmers 
in the county, and is regarded as one of the most enterprising and 
progressive. 

Mr. Thompson has taken an earnest interest in the affairs of his 
county and township also, and made his interest manifest in practical 
work for their advancement and improvement. No commendable pro- 
ject involving their betterment or the general well being of their res- 
idents goes without his ardent and serviceable support. The fraternal 
life of his community has appealed to him with force, and he has been 
active in that, too, as a member of the Masonic Order and the Knights 
of Pythias. 

He was married on April 3, 1900, to Miss Ida Bargar, a daughter 
of H. C. and Mary A. (Laffer) Bargar, pioneers and long highly 
respected residents of Linn county. Five of the offspring born of the 
union are living: Clifford C, Theodore C, Howard K., Genevieve L 
and Catherine E., all of whom still abide under the family rooftree and 
brighten and adorn the family circle of their parents. Mr. and Mrs. 
Thompson are among the most highly esteemed residents of Linn 
county. 



578 HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 

GEORGE W. ANDERSON 

The fertile land of Linn county has proven a great benefaction to 
hundreds of persons who have lived on it, and the usually genial climate 
of this section of the state makes its attractiveness all the greater. 
Those who are native to the soil and have known scarcely any other, 
are pleased with it, of course. But it attracted attention and had a rep- 
utation before many people occupied it, and drew settlers at an early 
day in the history of the county from many distant points. 

Among the early but not earliest arrivals were George and Agnes 
(Hunt) Anderson, the parents of George "W. Anderson, now one of the 
prominent farmers and leading live stock men of Jefferson township, 
who located in that township in 1869, when he was but six years old. 
They were natives of Genesee county, New York, where the father was 
born on October 29, 1831, and moved to Illinois early in their married 
life, locating in Peoria county. They farmed there until the land 
beyond the Mississippi, as it was to them, beckoned them with too 
persuasive a hand to be resisted, and then they came to this county to 
pass the remainder of their lives. 

The father bought a farm in Jefferson township three miles south- 
east of Laclede, where they dwelt until 1891, then moved to Brookfield. 
In that ,city the mother died in 1893 and the father in August, 1911. Of 
the eleven children born of their union nine are living, four of them 
sons, and three of these are residents of Linn county. The father 
served as a justice of the peace two years, and was among the most 
esteemed men in the county. The farm on which he located was at the 
time but slightly improved, but when he left it his skillful husbandry 
had brought it to a high state of productiveness, his excellent judgment 
and good taste had improved it with attractive modern buildings, and 
it had all the features and state of advancement of a first rate farm. He 
was a prominent member of the Methodist Episcopal church. 

The paternal grandfather, Esquire Anderson, was also a farmer 
and migrated to Illinois in middle life. In that state he took up his 
residence in Henry county, and died at Galva, in that county, in 1884. 
His offspring numbered five, four sons and one daughter. They are all 
living but one son, the father of the subject of this brief memoir. 

George W. Anderson was born in Peoria county, Illinois, in 1863, 
and was but six years old when the family moved to Missouri, as has 
been noted. He attended the country schools near his home and worked 
on the home farm until he attained his majority, then moved to the farm 
of 360 acres in Jefferson township, which he now occupies, and which 



HISTOI^Y OF LIXN COUNTY 579 

is one of the best in the county. The land is very fruitful and he farms 
it with vigor, carrying on general farming operations on an extensive 
scale and with gratifying profits. In addition he handles a large vol- 
ume of live stock from year to year, and so conducts this branch of his 
business that it, also, brings him in handsome returns for his labor and 
enterprise. The farm is improved with good up-to-date buildings for 
all its operations, including the live stock department, and the dwelling 
is one of the most commodious, comfortable, attractive and completely 
equipped in the township. 

Mr. Anderson was married on March 7, 1888, to Miss Lizzie Carter, 
a daughter of Carlos and Betsey (Gustin) Carter, who located in Linn 
county in 1859, where they both died some years ago. Mr. and Mrs. 
Anderson have four children, their son Carlos C. and their daughters 
Betty A., Orliva L. and Zina G. The father of these children is always 
warmly interested in the welfare of his township and county and the 
substantial and enduring good of their residents, and he is at all times 
willing and ready to do all in his power to promote the general well 
being in every way open to his efforts. 

While taking an earnest interest in public affairs and believing 
firmly in the principles of the Republican party, Mr. Anderson is not an 
active partisan, although he gives his party good service in a quiet way. 
He has served as township trustee for twelve years, and in many other 
ways has shown his zeal in behalf of the locality of his home. He is one 
of Linn county's sturdiest, most sterling and most representative citi- 
zens, and the people esteem him in accordance with this estimate. Mrs. 
Anderson is a devout and serviceable member of the Methodist Epis- 
copal church, which her husband also attends and aids in supporting. 



JOHN H. SENSENICH 

Having been a resident of Linn county continuously for thirty-four 
years, and an occupant of the farm in Parsons creek township which he 
now owns and cultivates with such vigor and success, John H. Sensenich 
knows all the requirements of the locality in which he lives and is zeal- 
ous in his efforts to aid in providing for them. He has given the people 
dwelling in his neighborhood a good example in his enterprising and 
progressive farming, and has also been of service in stimulating others 
to active efforts in belialf of public improvements in addition to what he 
has done himself in this direction, and that has been a great deal and 



580 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

always cheerfully performed and directed by intelligence and breadth 
of view. 

Mr. Sensenich is a native of the great county of Lancaster, in the 
great state of Pennsylvania, where he was born on March 1, 1835. His 
parents. Christian and Katie (Hestand) Sensenich, were also natives of 
that state and passed tlie whole of their lives there. They belonged to 
the race known as Pennsylvania Dutch, and had all the excellent traits 
of that thrifty and frugal people. The mother died in her native state 
in 1891, aged ninety years, and the father at the same place in 1845. 
They were the parents of four children, three of them sons, the only 
ones now living being John H. and his sister, Mrs. Weaver, who resides 
on the old family homestead. The father was a school teacher and also 
a tinsmith and marble cutter, being of a mechanical turn and able to do 
good work in several crafts. 

The grandfather, whose name was also John Sensenich, was also a 
native of Pennsylvania, and passed his life in that state. He was a 
farmer, and according to the range and conditions of his time a success- 
ful and prosperous one. The first representatives of the family in this 
country came over from Switzerland before the Revolutionary War, 
and some of its early American members took part in that great and 
arduous struggle for liberty and independence. They were imbued 
with the spirit of William Tell, and ready at the first call to fight for 
freedom from a galling foreign yoke. 

John H. Sensenich was reared in his native county and educated 
in its district schools. After completing his education he served two 
years apprenticeship to a carpenter and cabinet maker. But this trade 
was not to his taste and he abandoned it. In 1860 he turned his atten- 
tion to making binding boards to be used in bookbinding. Efe followed 
that business fifteen years, and then gave it up. In 1878 he came to 
this county with the determination to become a farmer, and with that 
end in view rented land which he farmed for two years. He found the 
occupation agreeable and has adhered to it ever since with profit to 
himself and benefit to the country around him. 

In 1880 he bought a tract of forty acres of land for which he paid 
the sum of $14.40 per acre. To this he has added by subsequent pur- 
chases until he now owns 181 acres. He has been industrious all the 
time, thrifty in his management of his work and business in general, 
studious and progressive in his methods of farming, and up to date in 
his ideas of improvement, and he has transformed his once uncultivated 
expanse into a model farm and a very comfortable and attractive coun- 
try home. 



HISTORY OF LIXX COUNTY 581 

Mr. Sensenicli was married in Pennsylvania in 1859 to Miss Har- 
riet Diller, who was also a Pennsylvania by birth. They have had 
eleven children, two of whom died in infancy and two, Adam and 
Ulysses G., further advanced in life. The seven who are living are: 
Clara, who is the wife of Charles E. Bobbins; David, who is residing in 
Wheeling, Missouri; Catherine, whose home is now in Pennsylvania; 
John J.; Elizabeth, who is the wife of M. B. Harter, of Linn county; 
Susan, who is the wife of Henry Ganger, of Oklahoma, and Charles S. 
Their mother died on January 22, 1912, respected and loved by all that 
came within the circle of her acquaintance. 

At all periods of his life from youth Mr. Sensenich has been deeply 
interested in the welfare of his country. During the Civil War he was 
particularly anxious over the fate of the Union and ardently desirous 
of its preservation. Family ties and other conditions prevented him 
from enlisting in the army himself, but he sent a substitute, and thus 
did what he could for the issue he had so mu,ch at heart. He also sup- 
ported the Union in every other way available to him during the great 
conflict. 

Mr. Sensenich 's farming has always been of a general nature, and 
has been wisely and skillfully conducted. In political faith and alle- 
giance he is a Bepublican and firm in his loyalty to his party. Fra- 
ternally he is connected with the Order of Odd Fellows, and in religious 
affiliation with the Methodist Episcopal church. In church work he is 
very active, serving as steward, class leader and Sunday school super- 
intendent in the congregation to which he belongs, and having been 
also district steward in his territory. He is widely and favorably 
known throughout the county, and in all parts of it is one of the most 
highly respected of its citizens. 



EDWARD R. COATES 

With his childhood and youth darkened by the terrible shadow of 
the Civil War, and all opportunities for education in the schools put 
beyond his reach by that maelstrom of disaster; with the prospects in 
life to which he was born also swept away by the sectional strife that 
almost rent our severely tried country asunder, whereby he was com- 
pelled to begin life for himself at the very bottom of the ladder instead 
of well up on its rungs in a worldly way, as he would otherwise have 
been able to do; and with the care of his father's household thrust upon 
him in his young manhood by the father's death, Edward B. Coates has 



682 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

had a large element of tragedy in liis career. But he is of a resolute 
and resourceful nature, and has met all the requirements of his situa- 
tion, whatever it has been, with manly courage, stern endurance and a 
reliance on himself that has brought him steady advancement, 

Mr. Coates was born in Caroline county, Virginia, on December 
18, 1855, and is a son of John B. and Elizabeth J. (Rouzie) Coates, also 
natives of Virginia, the former born in Carolina and the latter in Han- 
over county. The father's life began in 1829. He was a son of William 
Coates, also a Virginian by birth and lifelong residence, and died in 
that state. William's offspring numbered three, two sons and one 
daughter. The daughter is still living in Virginia, Caroline county, 
and is the widow of Joseph H. Flippo. Her father was a soldier under 
Washington from the beginning to the end of the Revolutionary War 
and took part in most of its important battles in which that great 
patriot was in command. 

John B. Coates grew to manhood in his native state and was an 
extensive planter and slave owner there. He was educated in private 
schools and thoroughly indoctrinated in the political theories of his 
state. Soon after the Civil War began he enlisted in Company E, Thir- 
tieth Virginia Volunteer Infantry, and in that regiment he fought from 
the beginning to the end of the conflict, taking part in the first battle 
of Manassas and surrendering with Leet at Appomattox. 

When the war ended he found all his estate gone and himself 
obliged to begin life's struggle for advancement all over again. He 
lingered in his native state until 1877, then brought his family to Mis- 
souri and rented a farm in Linn county on Locust creek, and on this 
farm he died in 1880. He was married in Virginia in October, 1852, to 
Miss Elizabeth J. Rouzie, a daughter of Dr. Edward A. and Maria L. 
(Pleasants) Rouzie, also natives of the Old Dominion. The father was 
a physician and in constant practice until his death, which occurred in 
Virginia in about 1883. 

Mr. and Mrs. John B. Coates were the parents of seven children, 
all of whom are living: William F., who resides in Virginia; Edward 
R., the immediate sketch of this review; Mark G. and Arthur K., 
sketches of whom will be found in this volume ; Helen Virginia, who is 
the wife of E. R. Stevens and has her home in Oklahoma; Judson T. L., 
who is a resident of North Dakota; and Thomas B., who is in business 
in St. Louis. Edward R., Mark G. and Arthur K. are residents of Linn 
county. 

Edward R. Coates grew to manhood in Virginia. He was but six 
years old when the Civil War began, or something less than that, and 



HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 583 

it deprived him of all opportunity to attend school in his earlier years. 
He saw a great deal of the momentous conflict and the scenes he wit- 
nessed are burned into his memory, for he was one of its heavy suf- 
ferers. In 1877 he came with his parents to this county and remained 
with them here for a number of years. During the remaining years of 
his father's life he assisted him on the farm, and after his death the 
son took charge of the family, being the oldest son at home, and con- 
ducted the operations of the farm for the benefit of the household 
until 1884. 

In that year he bought the farm he now owns and cultivates, and 
since then he has devoted his time and energies mainly to that. It com- 
prises 140 acres of good land and is well improved with commodious 
and substantial buildings. He has brought it to a high state of pro- 
ductiveness and made it one of the most desirable rural homes in Par- 
sons ,creek township. Throughout Linn county he is well known as a 
progressive and enterprising citizen, warmly interested in the improve- 
ment of this part of the state and at all times willing to do his full part 
toward promoting its advancement. He belongs to the Democratic 
party in political relations and is one of its leaders in the county. Fra- 
ternally he is connected with the Modern "Woodmen of America and 
the Knights of Pythias. 

On May 16, 1894, Mr. Coates was united in marriage with Miss 
Fannie Carmichael, a daughter of Delos Carmichael, who came to Mis- 
souri in 1868. He was born in the state of New York and reared in 
Hillsdale county, Michigan. In 1857 he made a trip across the plains 
to California, and a little later was a school teacher in New Mexico. 
His life in the mining camps and on the plains was full of adventure 
and often in critical danger. He had troublesome experiences with the 
Indians, and did not escape peril even when living and working among 
men of his own race. He is now living retired at Laclede. Mr. and 
Mrs. Coates have three children: Edward J., Charles E. and Laura V., 
all of whom are still living under the parental rooftree and assisting in 
the labors of the farm and the household. 



CEPHAS NEWSOM 

(Deceased) 

The late Cephas Newsom, of Parsons Creek township, whose tragic 

death in 1870, when he was but thirty-five years old, greatly shocked 

the widely scattered inhabitants of his neighborhood, which was 

sparsely settled at that time, was a pioneer in this county and molded 



584 HISTORY OF LIXX COUXTY 

in the i^roper form for a heroic and very useful man. He was born in 
North Carolina in 1835, and was taken by his parents to Kentucky in 
his childhood. A few years later they brought him to Missouri, where 
the family found a new home in Carroll county, and where the parents 
passed the remainder of their days. 

Mr. Newsom grew to manhood in Carroll county, this state, remain- 
ing there until 1865, when he came to Linn county and bought the farm 
on which he was killed in 1870. The cause of his death was the fall 
of a log, which he was hauling over Locust creek, on him, and which 
crushed out his life at once. He was at the time a young man of thirty- 
five, in full vigor of body and mind, earnest in his ambition for success 
in life and resolute in his determination to work for it. He had already 
made his mark in the community as a man of intelligence and resource- 
fulness, and the people regarded him as a very useful and highly prom- 
ising addition to the .citizenship of the township and county. 

When he came into this locality he bought his land in a wild and 
wholly unimproved condition, and in the five years or less of his occu- 
pancy of it he had broken it up, erected good buildings on it and 
brought a large part of it under cultivation. All his movements showed 
him to be a man of enterprise and progressiveness, and his example 
was influential in making others more contented under the hardships 
they were all obliged to undergo, and more determined to proceed with 
their work of improving their land and building up here a new field of 
fruitfulness for the material advantage of the state and country and 
enriching it with all the concomitants of civilized life and achievement. 

Mr. Newsom was married about the year 1861 to Miss Mary J. 
Davis, a daughter of James and Nancy (Johnson) Davis, the former a 
native of Ireland and the latter of Kentucky. The father was a tailor 
and lived in Linneus for many years, ending his days in that city. The 
mother died in Chariton .county. Mr. and Mrs. Newsom had six chil- 
dren, three of whom are living: Catherine, who is now the widow of 
G. F. Nesmith and lives in Garden City, Missouri; Mary E., who is the 
wife of Wilson A. Strickler and has her home in this county; and 
John A., who is a Linn county farmer. 

The mother of these children was married twice and Mr. Newsom 
was her second husband. Her former marriage was with H. Leabell, 
and by her union with him she had one child, Laura A., who is now the 
wife of S. A. Mjers and resides in the state of Idaho. Mrs. Newsom is 
still living and has long maintained her residence in Parsons Creek 
township, where she is held in high respect as a most estimable and 




HON. BFJNJAMIN L. WHITE 



HISTOEY OF LIXN^ COUXTY o«a 

worthy woman whose life among this people has been of great service 
to them. 

Mr. Newsom served in the Missouri state militia during the Civil 
War. He was a devout and consistent member of the Christian church 
and zealously attentive to all the duties of citizenship. When he came 
to this county his neighbors were few and it was far between them, but 
wild game was yet abundant and furnished a ready supply of food, 
which, without it, would often have been very scarce. His widow is 
now seventy-five years of age, but very vigorous and active for her 
years and still full of energy. 



HON. BENJAMIN L. WHITE 

J3escended from sturdy old EngUsh stock on his father's side, and 
from people of the same sterling character in Germany and Ireland on 
his mother's ; with his paternal ancestors domesticated in Virginia from 
early colonial times, and his branch of the family emigrating from the 
Old Dominion to Kentucky while the latter was still "the dark and 
bloody ground;" with them all making excellent records as strong, 
patriotic, elevated and progressive citizens wherever they lived, and 
taking their part in all the affairs of their several localities ; and with 
several generations of them pioneers, conquerors of the wilderness and 
potential forces in laying the foundations of mighty commonwealths, 
Hon. Benjamin L. White, a prominent lawyer of this county living at 
Marceline and now senator from the Sixth senatorial district of the 
state, has many incentives to public spirit and enterprise in public 
affairs and upright and estimable manhood in private life in the long 
and serviceable record of his family. And so truly has he lived up to 
the examples and inspiration to be found therein, that his forebears 
may not inaptly be said to be ' ' Sceptered sovereigns who still rule his 
spirit from their urns." 

Senator White is himself a native of Kentucky, his life having 
begun in Adair county of that state on December 16, 1868. He is a son 
of Benjamin and Hannah J. (Winfrey) White, who were also born and 
reared in Kentucky. The father was a farmer who came to Missouri 
prior to the Civil war, but returned to his native state in 1862. In 1870 
he started back to this state with an ox team, intending to make his 
home in Carroll county. But he got no farther on the trip than Mont- 
gomery county, Illinois, and there he passed the remainder of his days 



586 HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 

on a farm, on which his life closed in 1881. The mother died at Marce- 
line, this county, in 1911. 

They were the parents of eight children, seven sons and one daugh- 
ter. Three of the sons are still living : Henry C, who resides at Deca- 
tur, Illinois; and William B. and Benjamin L., who are residents of 
Marceline. It should be stated in connection with the father, that he 
passed two years in the Union army during the Civil war, having 
enlisted in a Missouri regiment when the conflict was about half over. 
In his military career, as in everything else, he hearkened to the call of 
duty with a willing heart, and met its every claim to the limit of his 
power and opportunity. 

Senator White grew to manhood on a farm in Montgomery county, 
Illinois, and was educated in the public schools and an academy in Hills- 
boro, in that county. He began life for himself as a clerk in a grocery 
store, and when he was about nineteen years of age turned his attention 
to the study of law under the direction of J. J. Phillipps in Hillsboro. 
He was admitted to the bar by the supreme court of Illinois when he 
was twenty-one, and, following the example of his father and other 
ancestors, he at once started for the newer country of the farther West, 
coming to Carrollton, Missouri, and forming a partnership with Virgil 
Conkling, a lawyer of that city, for the practice of his profession. 

Within the same year, 1889, he located at Marceline and entered 
upon his practice, and here he has lived and labored in his professional 
wor). ever since. His business has grown to extensive proportions and 
his reputation has expanded and risen as his practice has increased. 
T) .e first political office he held in Linn county was that of city attorney 
ol Marceline. In 1908 he was chosen to represent the county in the 
Uwer house of the legislature, and in 1910 was elected senator from the 
sixth senatorial district, an office which he is now filling with great 
benefit to the people of the whole state and decided credit to himself. 

In the one session of the senate which he has attended he was 
chairman of the committees on constitutional amendments and federal 
relations, and a member of the committee on the judiciary, the com- 
mittee on labor and other important committees. It is on record that 
he was regular and prompt in his attendance at the meetings of he 
senate and the various committees to which he was assigned, that he 
took an active part in committee work and the proceedings of the sen- 
ate, and that he was always heard with attention and approval in both. 
He has a mde and accurate knowledge of public affairs, state and 
national, is well versed in parliamentary law, has great force and fluency 



HISTOEY OF LIXX COUNTY 58? 

as a speaker, and is everywhere known to be reliable in his statements 
and true as steel to any cause he favors. 

In his political faith and alliance Senator White is a Democrat of 
firm conviction in the principles of his party and entire loyalty to them. 
He is an energetic worker for the candidates of his party in all cam- 
paigns and one of the most effective campaigners it has in this part of 
the state. In fraternal relations he is connected with the Masonic 
order, the Order of Elks and the Modern Woodmen of America. His 
interest in the progress and improvement of, the county has always 
been warm and manifested in substantial work of value both in its wis- 
dom and its volume. He is one of Linn county's best lawyers, most 
representative citizens and most esteemed men. On April 6, 1893, he 
was united in marriage with Miss Carrie E. Wolcott, a native of Scot- 
land county, this state. They have one child living, their daughter 
Ruth W., who is still at home with her parents. Mrs. White shares fully 
in the general esteem and popularity which her husband enjoys, and 
in every sense, both are worthy of it all. 



ARTHUR K. COATES 

The youngest of the three Coates brothers, who are prominent 
farmers and influential citizens of Parsons Creek township, this county, 
and the only representative of a large family who now live in the 
county, Arthur K. Coates exhibits in his daily life all the traits and 
characteristics of elevated manhood and progressive citizenship that 
have distinguished his house for many generations, and have given it 
high standing and general public approbation wherever it has been 
known. 

Mr. Coates, like his brothers, Edward E. and Mark G., sketches of 
whom are published in this history, is a native of Caroline county, Vir- 
ginia, where his life began in March, 1861. He is a son of John B. and 
Elizabeth J. (Rouzie) Coates, whose life story is briefly recorded in 
the sketch of his brother Edward. He came with the rest of the family 
to Missouri in 1877, after the Civil War had wasted all the substance of 
the household and here he attained his manhood and began the battle 
of life for himself as a farmer, following the occupation of his fore- 
fathers since the advent of the family in this country. 

He .continued farming in this county until 1888, then went to what 
was at that time Washington territory, where he remained two years. 
In 1900 he returned to Missouri, and, after a residence of twelve vears 



588 HI8T0KY OF LINN^ COUNTY 

in St. Louis, returned to this county, and here he has maintained his 
home ever since. When he came a second time to this county early in 
the present year (1912) he bought the farm of 120 acres on which he 
now lives in Parsons Creek township, not far from the town of Mead- 
ville, and on which he is preparing to carry on farming operations with 
vigor and every effort to win the greatest and most creditable success. 

Mr. Coates was married on March 12, 1894, to Miss Eva Sloneker, 
a native of Missouri. They have one child, their daughter Lorain, who 
is now seven years old. Mr. Coates does not intend to devote himself 
alone to farming. He has extensive and accurate knowledge of the 
sheepbreeding industry, and will give a large part of his attention to 
that. The strain he has selected for his enterprise in this line is the 
American Merino, which he believes is particularly adapted to this 
latitude and climate and the conditions prevailing here. 

In politics Mr. Coates is a Democrat, warmly interested in the suc- 
cess of his party and energetic and effective in all campaigns in helping 
to promote that. He is a man of broad views with reference to public 
improvements, and always ready and willing to do his full share toward 
bringing them about, and is everywhere and at all times deeply inter- 
ested in the general well being of the community in which he lives. His 
religious connection is with the Methodist Episcopal church. The resi- 
dents of his township hold him in high esteem and throughout the 
county he is favorably known and sincerely respected as an upright 
man and a progressive, practical and serviceable citizen. 



MARK G. COATES 

Actively engaged in farming in this county from the time when he 
was eighteen years of age, and for many years prominent in the political 
and social life of the region, filling with credit to himself and benefit to 
his township a number of local offices, and all the while manifesting a 
deep and helpful interest in the progress and improvement of his local- 
ity, Mark G. Coates, one of the leading farmers of Parsons Creek town- 
ship, has honestly earned the high esteem in which he is held by the 
people and won by his demonstrated merit the influence he wields 
among them. 

Mr. Coates was born in Caroline county, Virginia, on June 27, 1859. 
He is a son of John B. and Elizabeth J. (Rouzie) Coates, an account of 
whose lives appears in a sketch of his brother, Edward R. Coates, 
elsewhere in this work. The father died in Linn county on July 16, 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 589 

1880, and the mother is still living here. Their old plantation in Vir- 
ginia was a part of one of the battlefields of the Civil War, and the 
father was a soldier in the Confederate army under ' ' Stonewall ' ' Jack- 
son, which defended it against the Union troops and helped to write 
.the name of the village of Milford, near which it is located, on the 
thrilling pages of the history of that terrible, sanguinary and mo- 
mentous conflict. 

Mark G. Coates grew to the age of eighteen in his native county 
and was educated in its public schools and at its college in Bowling 
Green, the county seat. He came to Missouri with his parents in 1877, 
and from then to the present time (1912), excepting two years spent in 
Kansas, has been engaged in farming in the township in which he now 
resides. His farm of 120 acres is a model of neatness and skillful culti- 
vation, and is improved with commodious and comfortable buildings 
and provided with every appliance necessary for its tillage according 
to the most approved methods of farming. 

Mr. Coates has taken a very active interest in the public affairs of 
his township for many years. He has served as township clerk and 
assessor, as a justice of the peace and as a member of the school board. 
He is a Democrat in political faith and allegiance and prominent and 
influential in the councils of his party in this .county. Fraternally he 
is connected with the Modern Woodmen of America, and in church 
relations he and his wife are Methodist Episcopalians. 

In all undertakings for the advancement and further development 
of his township Mr. Coates is a forceful factor, leading in thought and 
action, and stimulating others to exertion by the force of his example 
and his personal influence. He is pul)lic-spirited always, and all his 
manifestations in this respect are marked by breadth of view and dis- 
criminating intelligence. The people of his township regard him as one 
of their best and most serviceable citizens and one of their most upright 
and representative men, and as worthy of their esteem from every point 
of view. 

On May 2, 1894, he was joined in wedlock with Miss Ada E. Wat- 
son, a daughter of Thomas L. and Eliza J. (Parks) Watson, a brief 
account of whose lives appears on another page of this volume. Two 
children have been born of the union, a son named John T. and a daugh- 
ter named Jane Marie. All the members of the family stand well in the 
regard and good will of the people, who have found them all worthy of 
high esteem in every relation in life, and serviceable in connection with 
every agency working for the good of the community, morally, intel- 
lectually, socially and materially. They are all widely known in the 



590 HISTOBY OF LINN COUNTY 

county for their genuine merit and the elevation and progressiveness 
of their citizenship. 



LOUIS T. ROWLAND 

During all of the last thirty-two years this enterprising, progres- 
sive and successful farmer and live stock breeder has been a resident 
of Linn county, contributing essentially and substantially to its prog- 
ress and improvement, helping to swell the volume of its products and 
its commercial and industrial importance, and representing in a grati- 
fying way the strength and manhood of its citizenship. He has a spe- 
cial fondness for these lines of endeavor, and has made such a careful 
and discriminating study of all their bearings that he has impressed 
himself on the public estimation of his township as one of its best and 
most judicious farmers and stock men. 

Mr. Row^land is a native of Delaware county, Ohio, born at the 
county seat of that county on February 12, 1856. His parents, Thomas 
J. and Mary (Jones) Rowland, were born and reared in Wales, where 
their families were domesticated for many generations. The father's 
life began on August 7, 1817, and ended in Delaware, Delaware county, 
Ohio, on May 10, 1893. The mother died in the same city on April 10, 
1880. The father came to the United States in 1842 with his parents. 
His father, John Rowland, was a local exhorter for the Congregational 
church, and died near Delaware, Ohio, in 1850. 

Thomas J. Rowland and his wife were the parents of five children 
who are now living, Louis W. being the only one who is a resident of 
Missouri. His brother, William R. Rowland, served in the Sixty-sixth 
Ohio Volunteer Infantry, Company E, during the Civil War, and upheld 
the cause of the Union on some of the bloodiest and most disastrous 
battlefields of that terrible deluge of death and devastation. He did 
his duty with full fidelity, but went through the conflict uninjured. 

Louis T. Rowland was reared in his native county and educated in 
its public schools. After leaving school he worked as a clerk and sales- 
man in a store there for some years. But mercantile life, especially in a 
subordinate capacity, did not satisfy his desires, and he longed to be at 
the head of some business of his own, and farming was the line he pre- 
ferred. Accordingly, in 1880 he came to this county and bought the 
farm of 185 acres in Jefferson township which he now owns, occupies 
and cultivates. 

He has improved this farm with good, new modern buildings and 
equipped it w^ith every appliance required for its proper cultivation 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 591 

in the most approved and up-to-date manner. He carries on a vigorous 
general farming industry, and in addition is one of the leading breeders 
of Poland China hogs in this part of the state. In all his operations in 
both branches of his enterprise he is careful over every detail, and his 
output is always first class and has everywhere a high rank in the 
markets. 

Mr. Rowland was married on January 21, 1879, to Miss Eliza J. 
Glover, a daughter of Arthur and Mary A. (Warren) Glover, natives of 
Ohio, both now deceased. Four of the children born of the union are 
living : Mary D., who is now the wife of T. J. Threlkeld and resides in 
Alliance, Nebraska; Darly R., who is farming in this county; Esther L., 
who is living at home with her parents, and Roy, who is also still a 
member of the parental family circle. The father belongs to the Repub- 
lican party in political relations, but he is not an active partisan. His 
religious affiliation is with the Methodist Episcopal church. Through- 
out the county he is well and favorably known as an enterprising, j^ro- 
gressive and public-spirited citizen, and everywhere he is high respected 
as such. 



LUDWIG C. BRENDAHL 

For more than forty years an enterprising and progressive farmer 
in Jefferson township, this county, and, prior to entering upon his 
present industry, for two years employed in laying track for the Han- 
nibal and St. Joseph Railroad, Ludwig C. Brendahl has shown his inter- 
est in the progress and further development of this part of Missouri in 
two lines of constructive work, and rendered good service to the region 
in both. The industry and thrift, which are characteristic of the race 
from which he sprang, and which he has exhibited in a very commend- 
able degree, have made his work effective, and his breadth of vision 
and enterprise have given what he has done for himself, high rank in 
quality and an extensive range in volume and value. 

Mr. Brendahl is a native of Prussia, in the German empire, where 
his life began on March 8, 1838. His parents, John and Mary (Peters) 
Brendahl, were of the same nativity as himself, and the father passed 
the whole of his life, except a portion spent in military service, in the 
locality of his birth, where he died on October 8, 1870. He was a car- 
penter and wrought faithfully at his trade in times of peace. But when 
war prevailed and his country was engaged in it, he was at the front 
in defense of what it was contending for. He took part in the war of 
the allied countries of Europe against Napoleon, and was present at 



592 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

Waterloo when the star of that illustrious conqueror went down into 
everlasting gloom. In one of the battles in which he was engaged he 
was shot through the foot. The mother came to the United States after 
his death and died in Clinton county, Iowa, in about 1874. They were 
the parents of six sons and two daughters, of whom the daughters and 
three of the sons are living, and all residents of this country but one 
of the sons. 

Ludwig C. Brendahl grew to manhood in his native land, and at 
the age of twenty years entered the German army for the three years' 
service required of all young men by the law of that .country. Soon 
after his term of military service expired in 1861 he was drafted for 
another short period of army duty in 1862 and again in 1866. In 1867 
he came to the United States and for a few months dwelt in the state 
of Michigan. From there he came to Missouri and Linn county in 1868, 
and for two years worked on the Hannibal & St. Joseph Railroad 
repairing track, as has been stated. 

In 1872 he bought the farm on which he noAv lives, and which he 
has improved with good buildings and all the other appliances required 
for its advanced and profitable cultivation. The farm comprises 240 
acres and is all under tillage according to the most approved methods 
of farming at this time, and its operations are managed with such excel- 
lent judgment and conducted with such vigor and intelligence that 
every acre yields good returns for the labor and care bestowed upon it. 

Mr. Brendahl is also one of the most extensive breeders of Poland- 
China hogs in this part of the West. This branch of his industry is 
also well managed, and yields considerable and steady profit to its pro- 
moter, Avho, although he is one of the oldest farmers in the county in 
continuous connection with the industry here, is also one of the most 
enterprising and successful, in both the volume and the value of his 
work and the fruits of it all in every department. 

On June 24, 1870, Mr. Brendahl was married in this county to Mrs. 
Varonacaw (Billiger) Bakeman. They have had three children, two of 
whom are living. The daughter Bertha, who was Mrs. Christian John- 
son, died in 1898, leaving two daughters, Helga M. and Christina. Their 
sons Adolph and Emil, who now have the active management of the 
farm and the live stock industry. Their mother died on March 1, 1904, 
but they have remained with their father with filial devotion, deter- 
mined to make his declining years as comfortable and free from care 
as possible by relieving him of all the burdens incident to the business 
in which the family is engaged. He is a devout member of the German 
Lutheran church, a most worthy and estimable citizen, a square and 



HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 593 

upright man, faithful to every duty and earnestly desirous of the sub- 
stantial and enduring welfare of the region in which he has passed so 
long a period of his life, and is well known and highly esteemed in all 
parts of the county of his residence and those which adjoin it. 



J. L. WOOD 



This busy, enterprising, progressive and very successful farmer 
and miller of Jefferson township, Linn county, Missouri, is in himself 
and in his possessions and operations one of the most interesting gen- 
tlemen in the county. He is the owner of 1,600 acres of land, 400 acres 
of which are covered by fine timber. He farms the land extensively, 
the .cleared portion, and manufactures lumber from the timber on a 
large scale. Thus in two ways, by his agricultural productions and by 
the output of his mills, he contributes a great deal to augment the 
industrial and commercial wealth and importance of Linn county and 
northeastern Missouri. 

His land is interesting too, highly interesting, aside from its extent 
and its fruitfulness. Many Indian and prehistoric relics of great value 
to the archeologist have been found on it, and geologists in the employ 
of the government of the United States have visited it to make scien- 
tific investigations. They have found it a fruitful field, and have 
reveled in the richness of its records and suggestions. The results of 
their examinations have been published in the government reports. 

Mr. Wood is a native of Illinois and was reared in Chicago. He 
was educated in that city also, and remained there until 1886, when he 
came to Linn county and began farming on an extensive scale. The 
products of his broad acres devoted to agriculture yield abundantly, 
and supply material for his large and busy flour mill, which was built 
in 1878 and conducted successfully from the start. Since coming into 
his possession it has frequently been operated day and night for weeks 
at a time to its full capacity, and then has not always been able to meet 
the requirements. 

In addition to this mill Mr. Wood owns and runs two large saw 
mills of considerable capacity, and these are kept busy with material 
supplied by his own timber lands. It would seem that these various 
enterprises, especially since they are very extensive ones, would fully 
satisfy his desire for work and business cares. But Mr. Wood is a very 
enterprising man and has an unusually active and resourceful mind. 



594 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

He could never be content if he were not undertaking something new 
or doing more considerably anything he has on hand. 

Year by year he has been pushing his farming to greater and 
greater proportions, and he is now promoting a project to drain the 
Locust creek bottoms, the work on which he hopes soon to begin. This 
is an undertaking of considerable magnitude and expense, but no task 
seems too hard or to involve too many difificulties for this resourceful 
man. And he carries on his large operations with an ease that is sur- 
prising to all observers, and marvelous to many who have little or none 
of his ability. It is so in almost all occupations. What the master mind 
can do without apparent effort or anxious care, ordinary mental capa- 
city is staggered by the sight of and awed by its successful achievement. 

The natural wealth which he is developing and transforming into 
useful commodities for the benefit of mankind has lain for ages un- 
touched. And even since the region in which it is located has been 
peopled by men and women of energy and enterprise, it has remained 
almost wholly dormant. It awaited the advent of the commanding 
might of mind, which came in the person of Mr. Wood, and it is yield- 
ing up its treasure to him with a readiness and bounty that prove his 
caliber and generalship. He is doing a great deal toward the develop- 
ment of his part of the county and the people of his township regard 
him as one of their most useful men. 



JOHN G. CLINEFELTER 

Brought to Linn county at an early day in its history and when he 
was but two years old himself, and having passed all his subsequent life 
within its borders; beginning early to earn his own living and progress- 
ing from poverty to comfort and then consequence as the county 
advanced in development, population, productiveness and importance, 
John G. Clinef elter, one of the prominent farmers and live stock men of 
Jefferson township, has epitomized in his own history, to some extent, 
that of Linn county itself, and is truly a representative man among 
its people. 

Mr. Clinefelter was born near Postville, Allamakee county, Iowa, 
on September 5, 1863, and is a son of Peter and Mary (Jones) Cline- 
felter. The father was a native of Pennsylvania and passed the whole 
of his life from boyhood on a farm and engaged in or connected with 
the farming industry. When the great, unpeopled West allured him, 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 595 

in his young manhood from his eastern home by its promise of rich 
and fruitful opportunities, he located first in Minnesota, but soon 
afterward moved to Allamakee county, Iowa. 

From Iowa he moved his family to Missouri and Linn county in 
1865, and on his arrival in this county he bought an unimproved and 
unbroken tract of prairie land east of Forker, which by industry and 
good management he transformed into a fine farm and improved with 
good, comfortable buildings. On this farm he lived and labored until 
his death in 1873. The mother died two years before, that is, in 1871. 
They had three sons and two daughters, but of the five John G. is the 
only one now living in this county. The family is of German origin, 
and all its members have shown in their daily lives the patient and 
persistent industry, and the other admirable traits of the great race 
from which they sprang. 

John G. Clinefelter grew from infancy to manhood in Linn and 
Chariton counties, and began roughing it in the world's great battle- 
fields at a very early age. The circumstances of the family were such 
that he was obliged to begin earning his own livelihood when he was 
but ten years old, and this necessity deprived him of almost all oppor- 
tunity to attend school or acquire any instruction from books or teach- 
ers. But he had the great force of Nature for an instructor, and from 
her he learned self-reliance and resourcefulness, acquired knowledge of 
his own powers and learned how to use them with readiness for emer- 
gencies and a scorn of obstacles to his progress. Added to these the 
hard but thorough lessons of experience were valuable to him, and so 
he in time became a well informed man in a general way and one that 
was most practical, and able to turn his hand to almost any employ- 
ment he found available to him. 

He began his career by working for meager wages on farms for 
others, then rented land and for some years farmed as a tenant. In 
1893 he bought the farm he now owns and cultivates, which he has 
improved with good buildings and other structures needed for its proper 
management, and made one of the most productive in the township in 
which it is located. His farming operations have been extensive and 
have been of a general and comprehensive character. But they have 
dot occupied all his time and energy or fully satisfied his desires. A 
number of years ago he began breeding Jersey cattle and pedigreed 
Duroc- Jersey hogs, being the pioneer in this county in breeding that 
strain of hogs. He has also, for some length of time, conducted an 
annual sale of hogs and cattle for breeding purposes. He has been 



596 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

very successful in his live stock industry, as lie has been in his farming, 
and is now .considered one of the substantial and prosperous farmers 
of the county. 

Mr. Clinefelter was married on December 25, 1888, to Miss Efifie A. 
Anderson, a sister of George W. Anderson, an enterprising and pros- 
perous farmer of Jefferson township, a sketch of whom is published in 
this volume. Of the children born of this union three are living: 
Erma, who is now the wife of Galen Lewis, of this county; and Fred 
F. and Harold A., who are still living at home with their parents, and 
assisting in the management of the work on the farm in all its 
departments. 

In political faith and allegiance Mr. Clinefelter is a Republican, 
but, while he is true and loyal to his party, he takes no active part in 
political controversies and has never sought or desired a political office 
of any kind. Fraternally he is a member of the Modern Brotherhood, 
and he and his wife belong to the Methodist Episcopal church. He is 
favorably known and cordially esteemed in all parts of the county as 
an excellent farmer, a citizen who is warmly interested in every means 
of promoting the general welfare of the locality in which he lives, and 
a man of strict integrity, high character and commanding enterprise. 



ZACHARIAH R. KLING 

Having come to Linn county about nineteen years ago with no 
capital but his ready hand, his clear head and his indomitable spirit 
and pluck, and having won from the soil a competency which makes 
him comfortable for life, Zachariah R. Kling, of Jefferson township, 
whose fine farm of 240 acres is located two and one-half miles south of 
Laclede, has shown in his successful career the power of persistent 
industry, good management and unconquerable will in this land of 
boundless wealth and almost boundless opportunity in advancing 
their possessor along life's highway to prosperity and consequence 
among men. 

Mr. Kling is a native of Adams county, Illinois, where his life 
began on December 25, 1868, and the son of Martin and Anna (Bren- 
ner) Kling, who were born in Germany. The father was reared to the 
age of seventeen in his native land and obtained his education there. 
He came to the United States about the year 1848, and enaged in farm- 
ing near Quincy, Illinois, where he is still living. The mother, whom 



HISTOEY OF LIXN COUNTY 597 

he married in Adams county in the neighborhood of his farm, died 
there in December, 1909. They were the parents of eleven children, six 
sons and five daughters, six of whom are living, Zachariah being the 
only one resident in Linn county. Both parents were reared in the 
doctrines of the Methodist Episcopal church. 

The paternal grandfather, whose name was also Zachariah, came 
with his family to this country when his son Martin came over, and 
passed the rest of his life in Adams county, Illinois, where he died 
after long years of usefulness as a farmer there and in his native land. 
He was an early settler in Illinois and prominent in the local affairs 
of his new home, and was valued for his services during his period of 
activity and revered as a pioneer and patriarch in his declining years. 

Zachariah E. Kling grew to manhood in his native county and 
farmed there until 1893, when he came to Missouri and lo.cated in Linn 
county on the farm which he now owns, and which he has made one of 
the best in the county. He bought it on his arrival, largely on time 
payments, and has cultivated it with skill and excellent judgment, and 
with very good results. He soon cleared it of debt, and as he is a 
wise and progressive farmer and his land is as good as any in the 
county, the fruits of his labor increased rapidly, and in a few years 
placed him above the reach of want, and, as far as such an estate could, 
beyond that of adversity. 

Mr. Kling was married in 1892 to Miss Edith E. AVoollen, a native 
of Adams county, Illinois, also, and the daughter of James A. and 
Susanna (Borgholthous) Woollen, the former a native of Maryland 
and the latter of the state of New York. They were married in 1845, 
and both are now deceased, the father having passed a^vay in this 
state. Mr. and Mrs. Kling have four children, all sons: Ralph, Elmer 
L., Calvin E. and Byron E. 

From the time of his arrival in this county Mr. Kling has taken an 
active and helpful interest in its public affairs. He is a Republican in 
politics and has firm faith in the principles of his party. Officially he 
has served as school director for a number of years. He has always 
been zealous in behalf of public improvements and earnest in the 
support of all worthy projects for their accomplishment, giving the 
advancement of the county along lines of wholesome development the 
same energetic attention he has bestowed on his own, and seeking to 
promote the general welfare of the people in every way he could. He 
and his wife are devoted members of the Methodist Episcopal church, 
and both are iiighlv esteemed. 



598 HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 

GEORGE LLOYD. 

The subject of this brief review is one of the best known and most 
successful farmers and stock men in Jefferson township, where he has 
lived since 1881, on a tract of 235 acres of land, which was in its primi- 
tive state of wildness when he bought it, and is now, by reason of his 
industry, skill and progressiveness as a farmer one of the most valu- 
able and desirable rural homes in the township, which is a region of 
well improved and well cultivated farms. During the whole period 
of his residence on this land Mr. Lloyd has made every day tell to his 
advantage and its improvement, and it is now a pleasing monument 
to his enterprise, good judgment and excellent management. 

Mr. Lloyd was born in Hocking county, Ohio, on December 19, 
1847. His parents were David and Elizabeth (Thomas) Lloyd, the 
former a native of Wales and the latter of Ohio. The father was 
brought to the United States by his parents when he was but seven 
years old, the family locating first in Pennsylvania and later moving 
to Ohio at a time when that state's rich soil and undeveloped oppor- 
tunities challenged the attention of the world and attracted hosts of 
emigrants from the older states of the Union and many foreign coun- 
tries, all of whom found the promise it gave verified. 

In 1858 he moved his family to Adams county, Illinois, and there 
he died in 1877. He was a farmer and miller, and a skillful workman 
in both occupations. The mother passed away in Oklahoma in 1910. 
They had four sons and one daughter, four still living, but George 
being the only one residing in Linn county. The grandfather, Anthony 
Lloyd, was a music teacher in Pennsylvania, and ended his days there. 
He found that state satisfactory on his arrival in this country from 
Wales and never left it. With its teeming and prosperous population 
it was a good field for his art, and he sought nothing better. 

George Lloyd moved with his parents to Adams county, Illinois, 
when he was eleven years old, and there he attained his manhood and 
received his education, all but the most elementary part of it. After 
leaving school he worked for a while on his father's farm and then 
started in the same occupation on a farm under his own management. 
He remained in Illinois until 1881, then moved to Linn county and 
bought the land he now owns and cultivates. Prior to the last five 
years he confined his operations to general farming, but during that 
period he has also been actively and profitably engaged in raising 
mules and Belgian horses for the markets. His judgment of live stock 
is good and every stage of his operations in breeding it is marked by 



HISTORY OF LINX COUNTY 599 

intelligence and the utmost attention to details in order that he may 
secure the best results, and his products have high rank wherever they 
are known. 

Mr. Lloyd was married in 1869 to Miss Caroline Daggett, a native 
of Illinois, where he was then living. Nine children have been born of 
their union, and seven of them are living: Wyatt, Landa, Thomas, 
Kufus, Charles, Rose and Asa. Mr. Lloyd has always been warmly 
interested in the progress and further development of his township 
and county, and their improvement to the highest attainable degree, 
and has been active in promoting their advancement. His efforts in 
this line are governed by intelligence and directed by good judgment, 
and are valued by the people around him because of their effectiveness. 
He is regarded as a man of high integrity, admirable public spirit and 
strong progressiveness — in short as one of the best citizens of the 
township. 



CHARLES P. BECKWITH 

Well known throughout Linn county as an enterprising, progres- 
sive and successful farmer of Parsons Creek township, and also as a 
citizen deeply, intelligently and practically interested in the advance- 
ment and improvement of the region in which he lives, Charles P. 
Beckwith is held in high regard by all classes and ranks of Linn county 
people. He has lived on the farm he now occupies, owns and cultivates 
for twenty-one years, and in the state of Missouri for forty-one. He 
has therefore long been a contributor to the wealth and importance of 
the state, and especially to the betterment of Linn county, for to this 
county he has given the best and most productive years of his life to 
the present time (1912). 

Mr. Beckwith is a native of Dunkirk, Chautauqua county, New 
York, where he was born on December 1, 1842. His parents were Rus- 
sell and Rosetta (Douglass) Beckwith, the former born in Chenango 
,county. New York, and the latter of the same nativity as their son 
Charles. The father's life began in 1813, and he lived in his native 
state until 1871, industriously and profitably engaged in farming and 
working at his trade as a carpenter. In the year last named he moved 
his family to Missouri and located in Livingston county south of 
Wheeling, where he died on his farm in 1888, and where the mother 
passed away in 1895. 

They were the parents of tw^o sons and two daughters, and of the 
four only their son Charles and two of his sisters are living. The 



600 HISTOBY OF LIXN COUNTY 

father was a Republican in political faith, and took an active part in 
the affairs of his party. He served as a justice of the peace for many 
years. The grandfather, Elisha Beckwith, was also a native of the 
state of New Y'ork and a carpenter. In middle life he moved to Ash- 
tabula county, Ohio, where he died well advanced in years and after 
making a long record of highly commendable usefulness and fidelity to 
every duty. 

Charles P. Beckwith grew to the age of eighteen on his father's 
farm in his native state and obtained his education in the district 
s,chools in the neighborhood. In October, 1861, he enlisted in the Ninth 
New York Cavalry, and was soon at the front and in the midst of hos- 
tilities. His regiment was in time assigned to the Army of the Poto- 
mac, and was a part of the force commanded by General Sheridan in 
his Shenandoah Valley camj^aign in Virginia, which was made famous 
by his brilliant victories over the Confederates and his sensational ride 
to the battle of "Winchester. 

Mr. Beckwith took part in the battle of Gettysburg, during which 
he carried dispatches for General Slocum. He also participated in the 
terrible contests at Chancellorsville, Cold Harbor, the Wilderness and 
Brandy Station. At an earlier period in the war he was with McClel- 
lan at Fort McGregor, White House Landing and in the campaigns 
around Richmond, and in the latter part of the war he was a part of 
the mighty army that won the battles of Petersburg, Winchester and 
Cedar Creek. He was in many minor engagements, too, his regiment 
being on duty in the thick of the conflict nearly all the time of its 
service. 

In 1864 he was mustered out of the army and returned to his 
former home in New Y'ork, where he remained until 1871, when he 
accompanied his parents and the rest of the family to Livingston 
county, in this state. In 1891 he bought the farm on which he now 
lives, and to this he has given his attention ever since. It was timber 
of the growth of ages when he bought it, but he has cleared and 
improved it with great industry and good taste, and it is now one of 
the desirable country residences in the township and as well cultivated 
and productive as any other. 

On April 28, 1866, Mr. Beckwith was married to Miss Elizabeth 
Dalrymple, a native of Chautauqua county, New York. They have five 
children, Eva M., Addison E., Nellie M., William G. and Cora B. Nellie 
is now the wife of Norris Humphries and lives in Meadville. Both par- 
ents are living. The father is a member of the Grand Army of the 
Republic, in which he keeps alive the memories of the war without any 




R. SPENCER KATHAN 



HlSTOPiY OF LINN COUNTY (iOl 

of the bitterness of feeling that marked its progress. He is widely and 
favorably known in Linn county and those which adjoin it, and every- 
where the esteem bestowed upon him as a farmer and a citizen is 
cordial, generous and richly deserved. 



R. SPENCER KATHAN 

It is an old adage, and as true as it is old, that "the Law is a jeal- 
ous mistress," the implication being that she will brook no worship 
from her votaries for any goddess but herself. The pleasing subject of 
this brief memoir seems to have been duly impressed with this fact from 
the very beginning of his devotions at the shrine of Themis, for since 
he began the study of law he has been steadily diligent in the prosecu- 
tion of it, both before and since his admission to the bar, and his indus- 
try has been rewarded by the acquisition of a comprehensive and accu- 
rate knowledge of the groundwork of his profession, and, in a more 
material way, by a large and steadily increasing practice. 

Mr, Kathan is a native of the Province of Quebec, Canada, where 
his life began on October 6, 1866. His parents, Eufus and Lucy M. 
(Gilman) Kathan, were also born in Quebec, and were reared and mar- 
ried there. The father was a farmer and hotel keeper in his native 
land. He came to the United States and Linn county, Missouri, in 
1865, on a kind of prospecting tour, but returned to Quebec before the 
end of the same year. In 1874 he came again to this county, but again 
for only a short stay, returning to his native city a few months later. 
But in 1876 he came to remain and brought his family with him. He 
bought a farm adjoining Bucklin on the South, and this farm he im- 
proved and lived on until he retired from active pursuits a few years 
ago. At that time he took up his residence in Bucklin, where he and 
his wife are now living. 

They are the parents of two sons and two daughters, all of whom 
are living. The ancestors of these children on both sides of the house 
were Scotch-Irish people, and all the American members of the family 
have shown the strong and fruitful traits of character which come from 
a judicious mixture of the Scotch and Irish blood. The Kathans, how- 
ever, have lived in Quebec for at least four generations. Earl Kathan, 
grandfather of E. Spencer, having been a native of that city. He 
operated a farm in the vicinity, and died at a good old age in Quebec. 

R. Spencer Kathan was a boy of ten when his parents brought him 
to Linn county, Missouri, to remain. He completed in the schools of 
this county the academic education he had begun in those of his native 



603 HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 

place, and then passed four years in the Normal department of the 
State University, in special courses of training for the vocation of a 
teacher. After leaving the University he taught school seven years, 
four of them at Bucklin and two at Laclede. In 1894, the last year of 
his teaching, he started to study law and in 1896 he was admitted to the 
bar. 

Mr. Kathan began practicing his profession in Bucklin the same 
year, and here he has remained ever since, growing in practice and pro- 
fessional reputation, and rising steadily in the confidence, regard and 
good will of the people all over the county. He served as prosecuting 
attorney for Linn county from 1905 to 1907, having been elected as the 
candidate of the Eepublican party, to which he has belonged from the 
dawn of his manhood, and rendered loyal service ever since. He has 
been a member of its county central committee for Linn county for a 
number of years, and always a potential force in its campaigns. 

His religious affiliation is with the Presbyterian church, in the 
work of which he takes an active part. He was married on May 7, 1893, 
to Miss Euby M. Herriman, a native of this county. They have four 
children, their daughters Lois, Beryl, Marjorie and Claudine. The 
father has had a predilection for fraternal life from his youth, and as 
soon as he was old enough gratified his desire in part. He is now a 
member of the Masonic fraternity, the Order of Odd Fellows, the Order 
of Elks and the Woodmen of the World, and in his lodge in each of 
these orders he is an active worker and his membership is highly valued 
by the rest of the members, for his zeal is tempered with prudence and 
intelligence and good judgment govern all his efforts. 

In the public affairs of the county he has always taken a helpful 
part, whether the enterprise he supported was directed to the material 
improvement of his township and county, or involved the moral, mental 
and social improvement of their people. No duty of citizenship has 
been neglected by him, and all have been performed with intelligence 
and a high sense of personal responsibility. In all parts of Linn county 
he is regarded as an able, resourceful and skillful lawyer and an up- 
right, conscientious and altogether estimable man, and he is universally 
esteemed on this basis. 



JAMES PHILLIPS 

Coming to Linn county as a young man twenty-four years of age 
and on his arrival here buying a tract of wild, unbroken land as the 
basis of his hopes of advancement in this region; devoting himself 
with assiduous industry and fruitful intelligence to the development 



HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY €03 

and cultivation of his untamed purchase until he converted it into a 
model farm enriched with good buildings, fences and other improve- 
ments necessary for its proper occupancy and cultivation, and equipped 
with modern appliances for the work that has to be done on it; and 
while doing all this devoting himself with a good citizen's zeal and 
enterprise to the progress of his township and county and the enduring 
welfare of their residents, James Phillips, one of the leading farmers 
and live stock breeders of Parsons Creek township, has made a record 
here of which any man might justly be proud, and which the people of 
his locality on all sides highly commend. 

Mr. Phillips is a native of the province of Ontario, Canada, where 
his life began on September 12, 1845. His parents, John and Polly 
(Sharrard) Phillips, were also born in the Dominion, the former in the 
province of Nova Scotia and the latter in the province of New Bruns- 
wick. The father was a school teacher and farmer. He located in 
Ontario in his young manhood and passed the rest of his life in that 
province, dying there in 1901 at the age of eighty-four years. The 
mother died in 1862. They were the parents of three sons and three 
daughters, all of whom are living. Their son James is the only one of 
their offspring who resides in Missouri, and he represents the family 
creditably among the people of tliis state. 

Some time after the death of his first wife the father married 
again, uniting himself in the second marriage with Miss Mary Perkins, 
a native of England. They had three daughters and two sons, and all 
but one of these are living and reside in Canada. Their mother died 
in 1902. The grandfather, William Phillips, was born and reared in 
Scotland. He was impressed into the navy when a young man, and 
when he obtained his release he located in New Brunswick. There he 
was married, and a short time afterward moved to western Canada, 
where he died well up in years. 

James Phillips grew to manhood in his native province and 
obtained his education in its district schools. He followed farming- 
there until 1869, when he came to Linn county and bought the farm 
on which he now lives. This, as has been indicated, was in its state 
of primeval wildness, rich in promise but stubborn at first in yielding 
up its treasures. Mr. Phillips broke up the land and began cultivating 
it. His progress was slow for a time, but the genius of command was 
in him, and the soil that had yielded nothing but the unpruned growths 
of the wilderness for ages became responsive under his persuasive and 
systematic tillage, and grew rapidly into comeliness, fruitfulness and 



604 HISTORY OF LINX COUNTY^ 

high value. He has now one of the most desirable farms of its magni- 
tude in the township of its location. 

In 1872 Mr. Phillips was joined in wedlock with Miss Jane Ander- 
son, who is, like himself, a native of Canada. They have had three 
children, two of whom are living: Susan, Avho is the wife of E. 0. 
Glore and resides in Livingston county, this state; and Emma, who 
married J. W. Gillispie, and now dwells w^ith him in the state of 
Nebraska. John, the only son born in the family, has been dead a 
number of years. 

In addition to his farming operations Mr. Phillips has been engaged 
for a number of years in breeding Shorthorn cattle, of w^hich he has a 
registered herd of twenty-four head. He also breeds Chester White 
hogs on an extensive scale and with great success. All his work in 
both his farming and his live stock industry is conducted with the 
utmost care, and the results in each are the full measure of attainment 
possible to intelligence, industry and skill in the circumstances of 
the case. 

In the public affairs of Linn county Mr. Phillips has long shown 
the most cordial and helpful interest and been a force of influence and 
fruitfulness. He has served as president of the township board four 
years, as a justice of the pea,ce two years, and as clerk of the school 
district thirty-five years, and in each of these offices he has made a 
record highly creditable to himself and beneficial to the township. In 
fraternal relations he is a member of the Order of Odd Fellows and in 
political affairs trains with the Democrat p^arty. To all the duties of 
citizenship he is true and faithful, and the residents of his township 
regard him as one of their most sterling and representative men. 



SHELDON J. MERCHANT 

Born in the state of New York and reared from boyhood to man- 
hood in Pennsylvania, Sheldon J. Merchant, now one of the prominent 
and progressive farmers of Jefferson towmship in this county, passed 
all the early years of his life amid the great activities and throbbing 
industries of two of the most potential states of tlie American L^nion. 
He has passed nearly all of the last two-thirds of his years in Missouri, 
another great state which needs only time to put it abreast of the two 
in the East already mentioned, and its present pace of progress will 
soon do that. 

Mr. Merchant was born in Cattaraugus county. New York, on 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 605 

November 2, 1843. His parents, Cliaimcey H. and Helen D. (Vansyle) 
Merchant, were also natives of New York state, and the father, who 
was a farmer, died in that state in 1886, after having passed the whole 
of his life within its borders. The mother survived him nineteen years, 
passing away in 1905. They were the parents of four sons and two 
daughters, but all are deceased except three of the sons, of whom 
Sheldon is the only one living in this state. 

One of the sons lives in Marion, Indiana, and the other is still a 
resident of the state of New York. These two served in the Union army 
during the Civil War, one of them in the Tenth Pennsylvania and the 
other in the Eighth New York Heavy Artillery. Their brother Shel- 
don was also a Union soldier in that memorable conflict and still bears 
the marks of his service. He obtained his education in the district 
schools of Pennsylvania and was engaged in that state until 1861. 

The effort of the South to secede from the Union fired him with 
patriotic fervor and he determined to aid in preserving the integrity 
of the republic at whatever cost to himself, and in the year last men- 
tioned enlisted in Company D, One Hundred and Eleventh Pennsyl- 
vania Volunteer Infantry, for a term of three years. At the end of his 
term he Avas discharged, but in 1864 he enlisted again, this time in the 
Eighth New York Heavy Artillery, where one of his brothers was, and 
in November of the same year was discharged on account of disability 
incurred in the service. 

During his life in the army Mr. Merchant took part in the battles 
of the Wilderness, Spottsylvania Court House, Cold Harbor and sev- 
eral others of less importance. At Cold Harbor he was shot through 
the leg, and this wound developed into a condition that rendered him 
unfit for further military duty. Before receiving it, however, he saw 
considerable service in the Shenandoah Valley. After his discharge 
from the army he returned to his old Pennsylvania home, where he 
remained until 1867. 

In that year he came to Missouri and located first in Chariton 
county, removing soon afterward to Carroll county, and from there to 
Brookfield, where he was in the grocery trade seventeen years. At the 
end of that period he took up his residence on the farm he now owns, 
occupies and cultivates, and on which he has had his home ever since. 
He has found farming agreeable as a steady occupation, and by his 
energy, industry and good management has made it profitable. 

On May 5, 1869, Mr. Merchant was married to Miss Elizabetli 
Eiggs, a daughter of Martin and Mary J. (Eager) Eiggs, who became 
residents of Linn county in 1865, and both died here. Mr. and Mrs. 



608 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

Merchant have had seven children, three of whom are living: Mary H., 
who is the wife of W. A. Thompson, of this county; Martin E., who is 
a prosperous Linn county farmer, and Herbert, who is also farming 
with profit in this county. 

The father is a Republican in political faith and party member- 
ship, and firm in his allegiance to his political organization. He has 
served as township assessor, and has long been one of the reliable 
workers for the principles and candidates of his party in his township. 
Fraternally he belongs to the Grand Army of the Republic, being a 
charter member of Brookfield Post in that organization. The mother 
is a member of the United Brethren church, and he also attends its 
services. In all departments of the public and industrial lifie of his 
township and county he is active in behalf of improvement and prog- 
ress, and in support of all the agencies at work in them for the moral, 
mental, material and social advancement of their residents he is earn- 
est, liberal and very helpful. The people of Linn county know his 
worth and esteem him in accordance with it, which gives him a high 
place in their regard. 



WILLIAM SHARP 

Representing the second generation of his family that has taken 
the wild land of Linn county in hand and brought it to systematic pro- 
ductiveness, and a residence of the household of sixty-one years in this 
region, a period which spans all the time intervening between the dawn 
of civilization fiere and the present high state of development and 
improvement the county has attained, William Sharp, of Jefferson 
township, is an interesting personage in the chronicles of Linn county, 
and both because of that and of his own high character and elevated 
citizenship, is worthy of special consideration in a work of the kind the 
promoters and publishers of this history are preparing for the purpose 
of perpetuating the record of the men who have made the county what 
it is and the course of events through which their triumphant march 
of progress has been made. 

Mr. Sharp has a particular claim to attention from the fa,ct that he 
was one of the boys born here in the early days and has lived in the 
county ever since. His life began in Locust Creek township on December 
8, 1852, on a farm then occupied as tenants by his parents, John P. and 
Caroline (Hansford) Sharp, the former a native of Tennessee and the 
latter of Virginia. They are still living in this county, and are among 
its most revered pioneers and esteemed citizens. 



HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 607 

The father is a farmer and brought his family from his old home 
in Tennessee to this county by ox teams in 1851. The journey was long 
and tiresome, especially for him, as he was obliged to walk most of the 
way, and it was full of hazard too, for along the greater part of it the 
friendliness of the Indians could not be relied on and the wild beasts 
of the forest and plain were deadly in their hostility. Against these 
dangers he was unarmed except with his flintlock rifle and his expert- 
ness in the use of it. 

After his arrival in Linn county he rented land of Judge Moore 
for a number of years, then in 1859, or about that year, bought the 
farm on which he now lives in Brookfield township. This comprises 
160 acres, and its present state of development and improvement is the 
result of the persistent and well applied industry of himself and his 
sons. For it was a wild, unbroken tract of prairie when he bought it, 
on which civilization had as yet made no mark and domestic comfort 
was still buried in the soil. 

He and his family cleared the land of its wild growth, broke it up 
for cultivation and started it on its way to its present high value and 
fruitful fertility. The first dwelling erected on it for the abode of the 
family was a log cabin, and wild game was the main dependence for 
animal food for its inmates. This was abundant, however, and easy to 
get, and the land soon began to yield supplies for the other needs of its 
cultivators. The parents are still living on that farm, and they now 
dwell in comfort where they first camped in hope, having wrested the 
bounties of Nature from her great storehouse by their own determined 
efforts. 

Ten .children were born in their household, six sons and four daugh- 
ters, and seven of them are living. One son is a resident of Michigan; 
one has his home in Montana, and still another dwells in Louisiana. 
William and two of his sisters live in Linn county. During the Civil 
War the family was troubled and the farm was wasted by the depreda- 
tions of the predatory soldiery on both sides of the great sectional con- 
flict, and suffered severely from the levies made upon them. The 
parents are zealous members of the Baptist church and helped to plant 
the sect firmly in this locality, helping to build the first houses for its 
use and strengthen its early congregations here. They also aided in 
putting up the first schoolhouse and maintaining the early country 
schools. Mr. Sharp's grandfather passed the whole of his life in Ten- 
nessee, where he died at the age of one hundred and four years, a 
veritable patriarch in his community and revered by all its people as 
such. 



608 HISTORY OF LIXX COUNTY 

William Sharp grew to manhood on the old family homestead, 
which he helped to clear and break up, and secured his education in 
subscription schools maintained in the neighborhood. He worked with 
and for his father until he reached the age of twenty-two, then rented 
land and farmed it on his own account for twelve years. At the end of 
that period he bought the farm on which he now lives, which, like his 
father's, was all wild land and wholly unimproved when he took pos- 
session of it. He has devoted all his subsequent years to its develop- 
ment and improvement, and has made of it a good and valuable farm 
and a comfortable and attractive country home. 

On March 18, 1877, Mr. Sharp was joined in wedlock with Miss 
Alice Duckworth, a daughter of Nelson and Sarah Duckworth, who 
came to this county in 1865 from their native state of Maryland, 
and died here a number of years ago. Mr. and Mrs. Sharp have had 
three children, but death has robbed them of all. In political relations 
Mr. Sharp is a Democrat, but he has never held or desired a political 
office, and has never taken a very active part in political contests. He 
has not, however, been indifferent to the progress and improvement of 
his township and county, but has been energetic and serviceable in 
helping to advance their interests in every way open to him. The 
people around him have always found him ready to aid in every 
worthy enterprise, and they have a high regard for him because of his 
genuine manhood and public spirit. 



JAMES F. BELSHE 

(Deceased) 

Although he has been dead nearly twelve years, and in that period 
the residents of Linn county have made rapid progress and advanced 
on a swelling tide of prosperity and improvement, and have therefore 
been busy about a multitude of interests, the name and record of 
James F. Belshe are still fresh in the memory of Linn county people, 
and his example is yet potential among them for good. He was one 
of the leading farmers in the county in his lifetime, and dignified and 
adorned his calling by the intelligence, enterprise and vigor with 
which he followed it through life. And he was also a wide-awake and 
public-spirited citizen, deeply interested in the welfare of his com- 
munity and zealous in helping to promote it. 

Mr. Belshe 's life began in Howard county, Missouri, on January 
15, 1835, and was therefore connected with the county from a very 



HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 609 

early period in its history. He was a son of William and Nancy 
(Botts) Belshe, the former a native of Kentucky and the latter of 
Tennessee. The father came overland by team to this state and located 
in Howard county about 1825. The family resided in that county until 
1839, when its residence was changed to Linn county, and here the 
father took up a large tract of land in Parsons Creek township. He 
added to his domain by subsequent acquisitions until he owned about 
1,200 acres. The land was easy of attainment then, for he was one 
of the first if not the very first white man to settle in the neighbor- 
hood in which he lived. 

When the parents came to this state they brought a number of 
slaves with them, and so were able to break up, clear and improve the 
land with more ease and rapidity than other householders who had no 
one but themselves to do the work. The father took an active part 
in the public affairs of the county and because of his superior intelli- 
gence and enterprise became a leading man in its early history. He 
was also very zealous in the work of the Baptist church, putting up 
the first house of worship for the sect in this locality, his activity in 
church matters making him even better and more widely known than 
he otherwise would have been. 

In political faith and allegiance he was attached to the Democratic 
party, and a great worker in its behalf. His first wife died in this 
county in 1861 and he passed away here in 1874. They had twelve 
children, six sons and six daughters, of whom four of the sons and 
two of the daughters are living. After the death of their mother he 
married Mrs. Nancy Gooch, and a few years later death robbed him 
of her also. He then married as his third wife a Mrs. Bragg of this 
county at the time of her marriage. 

James F. Belshe was reared in Linn county and educated in its 
district schools. He assisted in clearing his father's farm and break- 
ing up its stubborn soil, beginning at this work when he was still but 
a boy. He continued farming until his death, and in connection with 
that industry also bred and raised high grades of horses and cattle. 
Like his father, he was a man of prominence and influence in the 
county, and in a number of township offiees helped to administer the 
public affairs of this region for a long time, serving as school trustee 
for a continuous period of thirty years. He was a Democrat in politics 
and a Baptist in religious connection, and throughout his mature life 
gave valued service to the general public by his work in each 
organization. 

When he was scarcely more than twenty years of age Mr. Belshe 



610 HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 

was married to Miss Julia Slagel, and through this union became the 
father of five children, four of whom are living: James G., London E., 
and Joseph V. and William V., twins. Their mother died in 1862, and 
on May 19, 1867, the father contracted a second marriage in which he 
was united with Mrs. Phebe Taggart, a widow. The offspring from 
this union also numbered five, and three of them are living: Edward 
L., Henry F. and Fountain D. Their mother is still living but the 
father died on 0,ctober 21, 1900. 

He was one of the county's best citizens and one of Missouri's 
most representative and serviceable farmers. But his usefulness was 
not shown in his own occupation alone. Every form of the industrial 
life of this part of the state of Missouri held his close attention and 
interest, and every agency at work for the good of its residents always 
had his earnest and helpful support and the benefit of his intelligence 
and good judgment. He was very popular among the people and 
enjoyed their esteem in bountiful measure. They knew him to be wise, 
progressive and prudent in the management of his business, strictly 
upright in all his dealings and correct in his deportment in all the rela- 
tions of life from the beginning to the end of his long, clean and fruit- 
ful career. No man in Linn county stood higher in public estimation, 
and none in his lifetime deserved a higher rank. 



FREDERICK L. BOTTS 

Although young in years and also in his career as a farmer, Fred- 
erick L. Botts of Parsons Creek township has already written his name 
firmly in public estimation as one of the progressive, up-to-date and 
successful agriculturists of Linn county, and by his cordial, practical 
and helpful interest in the progress and improvement of this part of 
Missouri has taken rank as one of the wide-awake, alert and public- 
spirited citizens who are developing its resources to the best advantage 
and building its power and influence into enlarging magnitude in the 
industrial and commercial aggregates for whi.ch the whole country is 
famous. 

Whatever he is, too, Mr. Botts is wholly a product of Linn county, 
and therefore a true representative of the industry, resourcefulness, 
enterprise and force of character of the people who inhabit this politi- 
cal division of Missouri. He was born in this county on November 16, 
1877. He obtained his education in the district schools in the neighbor- 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 611 

hood of his boyhood home, and since leaving school, he has diligently 
added to the wealth and productiveness of the county by skillfully cul- 
tivating one of its large, fruitful and desirable farms. 

Mr. Botts is a member of a family that has been prominent in Linn 
county affairs from the dawn of its history. His great-grandfather 
came to this part of the state of Missouri about the year 1834, one of 
the early pioneers, and helped to lay the foundations of the civil and 
educational institutions of Linn county. His name was Thomas Botts, 
and he was a man of considerable local prominence and influence. 
One of his sons, William Leonard Botts, was the father of Frederick, 
and he also was born in this county. 

AVilliam L. Botts was a farmer, working for his father and help- 
ing to clear and improve the wild domain on which that gentleman 
settled when he located here, and afterward repeating the performance 
on his own account. In his young manhood he married with Miss 
Almeda Jacobs, a native of Sullivan county, Missouri. They are now 
living in Meadville, retired from active pursuits and enjoying the rest 
from labor and the general esteem of the people which they have so 
richly earned by their long and useful industry and continuous upright 
and commendable manner of life. 

vThey have two sons and one daughter living: Their son Frederick 
L., his brother Clifford L. and their sister Estella, who is now the wife 
of Ben Doolin, a resident of this county. Their grandfather, Joshua 
Botts, was a son of Thomas Botts, one of the first settlers in the county. 
The grandfather was brought to this part of the state as a child and 
passed the remainder of his life here. He followed in his father's 
course and cleared a farm on which he lived until his death. He mar- 
ried Miss Elizabeth Harvey, who is still living and has her home in 
Meadville. They were the parents of four sons and four daughters. 

V. Frederick L. Botts has been actively and profitably engaged in 
farming in Linn county on his own account from his youth, starting 
out early in the vocation to which he was reared and adhering to it 
with tenacity ever since. On December 1, 1907, he was united in mar- 
riage with Miss Lula Stephenson, a daughter of Thomas J. and Julia 
(Thome) Stephenson. Her father, Thomas J. Stephenson, came to this 
county after the Civil War and remained here until his death in 1910. 
Mr. and Mrs. Botts are members of the Methodist Episcopal church, 
prominent in social life in their community, and earnest in their efforts 
to advance the interests of their township and county in every way 
they can. 



612 HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 

THOMAS M. BOTTS 

, All of ttie three score years of the life of this valued citizen and 
enterprising farmer of Parsons Creek township to the present time 
(1912) have been passed in the state of Missouri, and thirty-eight of 
them in Linn county. Wherever he has lived he has made an excellent 
record as a farmer and as a man of enterprise and public spirit, and the 
people have known and appreciated his worth and usefulness in other 
localities as they do in the township and county in which he is now 
living. 

\ Mr. Botts came into being in Saline county, this state, on Novem- 
ber 27, 1852, and is a son of Addison and Martha A. (Worden) Botts, 
the former a native of Kentucky and the latter of Missouri. The 
father was born in Hancock county, Kentucky, in 1822, and in 1825, 
when he was but three years old, his parents brought him to Howard 
county in this state, making the journey overland with teams. On his 
arrival in Howard county the father took up a tract of unbroken gov- 
ernment land in the improvement and cultivation of which he passed 
the rest of his life. He was a man of prominence and influence in the 
early history of Howard county, serving as county judge for a con- 
tinuous period of twelve years and still occupying the office at the time 
of his death. His wife, at the time of her marriage to him, was a 
Mrs. Lucas. Their offspring numbered five, two sons and three 
daughters, all of whom are now deceased. 

V Their son, Addison Botts, the father of Thomas M., attained his 
manhood in Howard county and remained there, living with his par- 
ents and working for his father, until 1844, In that year he moved to 
Saline county, where he did as his father had done in Howard county 
— took up a tract of wild land and made a good farm of it. In 1860 
he moved his family to Carroll county in this state, where he lived a 
number of years, and where his wife died in 1860. He then moved to 
Oklahoma, and passed away in 1899. They were the parents of three 
sons and eight daughters, all of whom are living but two of the daugh- 
ters. 

- Thomas M. Botts grew from the age of eight years to manhood 
in Carroll county and obtained the greater part of his education in its 
district schools. He remained at home until 1874, then united himself 
in marriage with Miss Cleopatra J. Littrell of Howard county, and 
changed his residence to this county and settled on the farm on which 
he now lives. Mrs. Botts is a daughter of David J. Littrell, who was 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 613 

born in Howard county, Missouri in 1818 and came to Linn county to 
live in 1841. 

On Ms arrival in this county he took up a tract of wild govern- 
ment land, which he lived on until his death in 1893, devoting his time 
and energies to first clearing and then improving it, until under his 
skill as a husbandman and his industry in his work it became an ex- 
cellent and highly productive farm. He was married three times ; first 
to Miss Sarah Botts, and after her death to Miss Sarah V. Harvey, of 
whom death also robbed him. His third matrimonial union was with 
Mrs. Isabella Ryan, a widow. 

^ Mr. and Mrs. Botts have four children: Minnie, who is the wife 
of J. W. Trimble of Chillocothe ; Ida, who is the wife of E. F. Post of 
Wheeling, Mo.; Nannie, who married M. M. Powers and resides in 
Kansas City, and Charles W., who is a resident of California. The 
parents are members of the Baptist church. They are well known 
throughout the country, and in all parts of it stand in the highest re- 
gard of the people as most estimable citizens and fine types of Linn 
county residents, representative of its sturdiest and most sterling 
citizenship. 



JOHN H. BOTTS 



. This well known and widely esteemed farmer of Clay township, 
Linn county, has several elements of unusual interest in his claim on 
the respect and good will of the people of this part of Missouri. He 
represents the fourth generation of his family that has lived in and 
drawn sustenance from the soil of Linn county, and is a scion of a 
household that has been maintained in the state of Missouri for almost 
one hundred years. His grandfather became a resident of the county 
in 1834, and passed the remainder of his days here, and his father, the 
great-grandfather of John H., also came to the end of his life in the 
county at the age of one hundred and ten years. 

c Mr. Botts was himself born in the county on September 22, 1839, 
obtained what education he could get in the primitive schools of his 
boyhood in this region, and from his early youth has been actively en- 
gaged in farming here, never having lived any where else. The place 
of his birth was about one mile south of his present home, and there- 
fore the whole of his life to this time (1912) has been passed in the 
township in which he now resides, and in helping to develop its re- 
sources and increase its industrial and commercial importance and in- 
fluence in the state. 



614 HISTORY OF IJNN COUNTY 

. His great-grandfather was a Revolutionary soldier, too, and was 
present at the surrender of Lord Cornwallis at Yorktown, Virginia, in 
1781, which ended the war for our independence ; and he is a son of the 
first school teacher in this section, who afterward became his mother. 
In addition to these unusual and highly interesting conditions, he is a 
gentleman of the strictest integrity and uprightness, an enterprising, 
progressive and public-spirited citizen and an excellent farmer. 

V Mr. Botts is a son of Seth and Maria (Harvey) Botts, the former 
a native of Tennessee and the latter of Kentucky. The father was com- 
monly called '* Major Botts," as he was a prominent man and had con- 
siderable influence in the county. He came to Missouri with his parents 
in 1816. His father, Thomas Botts, located the family in Howard coun- 
ty on land which he took up from the government, and which he cleared 
and transformed into a good farm. He lived on that farm until about 
1834, when he moved to Linn county and took up his residence on its 
western boundary line, again entering land from the government and 
repeating on it what he had done on his former land in Howard county. 
He also operated a mill on Locust creek, and thereby gave the people 
of the section for many miles around one of the greatest conveniences 
they enjoyed at that early day. He died on his Linn county farm in 
1852, and his wife passed away there some years later. They were the 
parents of three sons and five daughters, all of whom are now deceased. 
The great grandfather's name was also Thomas Botts. 

^ Major Seth Botts, the father of John H., was born in 1813 and 
reared on the frontier. His opportunities for schooling were very lim- 
ited, as the pressing needs of the family required the exertion of every 
available force to clear and improve the wild land on which it was de- 
pendent, and he was obliged to assist in this work from an early age. 
He came with his parents when they moved to this county, and here he 
too took up government land and made it over into a valuable farm. 
He added to his possessions by subsequent purchases until at one time 
he owned 1,000 acres of good land, and had a great deal of it under cul- 
tivation. He owned a number of slaves who helped him in his work, 
and he became a man of consequence in the county and one of its leaders 
of thought and action. 

The mother died in 1880 and the father passed away at the home 
of his son, John H., in 1901. They had four sons and three daughters, 
all of whom are living l)ut one of the daughters. In their church re- 
lations the parents were Baptists and leaders of the sect in this part of 
the country. They were largely instrumental in planting it in this lo- 
cality, giving the use of their home for its early services for years, and 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 615 

helping to establish and strengthen it in every way they could. They 
were also zealous in other lines of improvement, especially that of public 
education. The mother, as has been stated, was the first school teacher 
in this part of the state, and she never lost her interest in school work. 
'. John H. Botts grew to manhood in Clay township and obtained his 
education in the country schools of his boyhood and youth, such as they 
were. He was very young when he began to assist his father in the 
work on the farm, and he kept steadily at it for many years, remaining 
at home until he was twenty-seven years old. He then moved to the 
farm he now owns and lives on, and which has ever since been his home 
and the object of his greatest care and attention. It has responded 
generously to his skillful husbandry, and under his management has 
become one of the best in the township, and equal in value, attractive- 
ness and fertility to almost any other of its size in the whole of Linn 

county. 

On May 6, 1874, Mr. Botts was married to Miss Sarah Heckman, a 
daughter of John and Elizabeth (Overpeck) Heckman, she came to this 
state many years ago from Ohio. Mr. and Mrs. Botts have one child, 
their son Frank S., who is married but still living with them. The 
father has served as township trustee seven years. He is a Democrat in 
political relations, a Freemason fraternally, belongs to the Church of 
Christ in religious affiliation, and is a deacon of many years service in 
his congregation. No man in the county is better or more favorably 
known, none has shown more merit, and on none have the people more 
liberally or more cordially bestowed their confidence and esteem. 



JOSEPH J. LITTRELL 

(Deceased) •/ 
The late Joseph J. Littrell of Parsons Creek township, who de- 
parted this life on April 24, 1899, at the age of nearly sixty-seven years, 
was one of the most extensive, enterprising, progressive and prosper- 
ous farmers not only in his township but in the whole of Linn county. 
His farming was his sole occupation, except some raising and feeding 
of live stock as incidental to it, and he gave his whole time and attention 
to it, saving what was necessary for the duties of active and patriotic 
citizenship, and the results were commensurate with his efforts and 

devotion. 

Mr. Littrell was born in Howard county, Missouri on December 4, 



616 HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 

1832, and was a son of James and Melvina (Harvey) Littrell, natives of 
Bourbon county, Kentucky. They moved to this state and Howard 
county about 1825 and were married there. Even that county was 
sparsely settled at the time and by reason of his superior intelligence 
and force of character the father became a man of prominence and in- 
fluence in connection with its political, educational and social affairs, 
and also an extensive landholder. 

In 1841 the family moved to Linn county, and here the father took 
up a large tract of government land, to which he added until he, at one 
time, owned about 900 acres, on which he erected what was probably 
the first frame house in this part of the state. The mother died in 1878, 
and the father's life ended at the home of his son Joseph in 1884. He 
owned a number of slaves before the Civil war, some of which he 
brought with him from Kentucky, and all of which he lost in Missouri 
when slavery was abolished in this country during the war. He and 
his wife were the parents of five children, two sons and three daughters, 
all of whom have died but the last born of the daughters, who is now the 
widow of Dr. Gish of Kansas City, Mo, 

V Joseph J. Littrell was reared in this county and obtained what edu- 
cation he could get in the primitive schools kept in the country districts 
during his boyhood. They were but crude in method and limited in 
scope at the best, and would fall far behind the requirements of the 
present day, but they prepared a race of sturdy and heroic men and 
women for the battle of civilization against the untamed forces of the 
wilderness, in which man, beast and Nature herself seemed leagued in 
opposition to the progress of mankind and in defense of the treasures of 
the wild from possession and use by the on-coming hosts of conquest 
and improvement. 

After leaving school Mr. Littrell engaged in farming on a large 
scale and continued his operations in this line until his death. During 
the Civil war he served in the state militia, and for many years he was 
one of the most active and servicable members of the Christian church 
in this part of Missouri. Throughout the county he was well and favor- 
ably known as a wide-awake and progressive farmer, a far-seeing and 
public spirited citizen, a man of high character and a true representa- 
tive of the best citizenship of the county and state, and his reputation 
in these respects extended far beyond the limits of the county on all 
sides. 

^ Mr. Littrell was married twice. His first union was formed in 1851 
and was with Miss Mary A. Barbee, a daughter of Captain Barbee, who 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 617 

enlisted a company in this county for the Mexican war. They had two 
children, one of whom grew to maturity and married Benjamin Wolf, 
but is now dead. Her mother died in 1857, and in 1859 the father 
married a second wife, uniting himself on this occasion with Miss Mary 
E. Alexander, a daughter of Spencer Alexander, a pioneer of Living- 
ston county who located there in 1837 and passed the remainder of his 
life there. 

, By his second marrige Mr. Littrell became the father of nine chil- 
dren, all of whom are living but one. They are : James S., William B., 
John E., Susan A., Ida B., Bertha E., Daisy M. and Robert E. Susan is 
now the wife of Henry J. Barnes and resides in Livingston county; 
Ida married M. C. Arnold and has her home in Hastings, Neb., Bertha 
is now Mrs. H. M. Tompkins, and her home is in Wheeling, Mo., and 
Daisy is the wife of H. P. Smith and a resident of Johnson, Ark. The 
sons are engaged in farming and raising live stock for the most part, 
and are men of influence in their several communities. Their mother is 
still living and maintains her home on the old homestead where she is 
held in universal esteem as one of the most estimable and serviceable 
matrons known to the residents of that neighborhood, and this judg- 
ment of her worth is fully and cordially indorsed wherever else the peo- 
ple have knowledge of her. 



JOHN P. PALMER 

The subject of this brief but suggestive life story has been a resident 
of Linn county, Missouri, throughout the last thirty years, and during 
the whole of that period has been of valuable assistance in promoting 
the progress and improvement of this part of the state in material and 
all other ways. He is modest and unostentatious in his demeanor and 
manner of living, but a man of genuine merit, warmly interested in the 
welfare and further development of the region of his home, and firmly 
and fervently loyal to his country in every respect. The people in all 
parts of the county recognize his worth and value his citizenship among 
them. 

Mr. Palmer was born in Washington county, Ohio, on April 27, 
1856. His parents, Pemberton and Susan C. (Hardy) Palmer, were 
also bom in that state, and the father is still living there. The mother 
died there a number of years ago. Five of their children grew to 
maturity, but their son John is the only one of the number who is 



618 HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 

living in Missouri. The father is now well advanced in years and prac- 
tically retired from active pursuits. In his days of activity he was a 
man of high standing and influence in his locality, prominent in the 
councils of the Eepublican party, of which he is still a loyal and zeal- 
ous member, and served as a county commissioner and justice of the 
peace for many years. 

The grandfather, Jewitt Palmer, moved from his native state of 
Massachusetts to Ohio when the state was young and in the distant 
West. He was a soldier in the Eevolutionary War, and in times of 
peace was an industrious and prosperous farmer. He died in Ohio long 
after that state ceased to be new and far to get to, and when he was 
himself well advanced in the number of his years and the length and 
usefulness of his creditable career. 

John P. Palmer attained his manhood in his native county and 
secured what education he was able to get in its district schools. His 
opportunities in this respect were limited, as the exigencies of the farm 
work required his aid in its performance from a very early age. Even 
before he reached his majority he began farming in Ohio on his own 
account, and he continued his operations in this line of endeavor in 
that state until 1882, when he yielded to a desire he had long felt and 
came West. 

In the year last mentioned he located in this county and bought 
the land which is now his farm, and which he has raised to generous 
productiveness by his skillful and systematic farming, and made a very 
desirable rural home by the valuable improvements he has put upon 
it. Its development and improvement has not been spasmodic, but 
steady and according to a well managed system, and the results are in 
accordance with the good judgment that arranged for them and the 
persistent industry and application that has wrought them out. 

Mr. Palmer was married on August 8, 1877, to Miss Kate Beck, 
who is also a native of Ohio. They have six children: Philip E., Pem- 
berton G., May, John, Joseph and Ruth. May is now the wife of W. H. 
Duncan and lives in Linn county. Ruth still abides with her parents. 
The father is a justice of the peace, and has occupied the office for a 
number of years. He is a Democrat in political relations, but has never 
been a particularly active partisan, although always true and loyal 
to his pplitical convictions. He stands by the locality of his home at 
all times and does all he can to advance the well being of its residents. 
In religious affiliation he and his wife are members of the Church of 
Christ, and both work Jealously for its enduring welfare. 




W. G. BECKETT 



HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 619 

W. G. BECKETT 

This gentleman lias the distinction of being the pioneer merchant 
of Purdin and one of the most active and potential forces in building 
and developing the town to its present size and importance. When he 
located there and opened the first store in the place or vicinity, the 
site was marked by a saw mill, but there were no roads leading to it, 
and the whole of its history was yet to be made. Mr. Beckett entered 
into the spirit of the requirements and has aided greatly in meeting 
them and making the most of an unpromising situation. His modest 
little store has expanded into the imposing establishment and large 
trade of the Purdin Mercantile Company, of which he was the founder 
and has been the president from the beginning of its successful and 
profitable career. 

Mr. Beckett was born in Linn county and is a native of Benton 
township, where his life began on January 5, 1857. His parents were 
James and Elizabeth (Trumbo) Beckett, the former a native of Howard 
county, Missouri, and the latter of Kentucky. John Beckett, father of 
James and grandfather of W. G., was among the first settlers in the 
neighborhood of Linneus, having come to this locality about 1831. He 
proved himself to be a man of great energy and fine constructive 
capacity, redeeming seven farms from the wilderness and improving 
them to an advanced state of productiveness, and also building a num- 
ber of bridges which were greatly needed for the convenience of the 
people and the development of the region. He died in Chariton county, 
leaving eloquent monuments behind him to declare his usefulness and 
worth by their extent and the timeliness of their construction, and 
many of his large family of fine children to mourn their bereavement 
and follow his illustrious example in usefulness to the communities of 
their residence and service to the people living in them. 

James Beckett, the father of W. G., was a farmer and also a dealer 
in tobacco in considerable quantities, buying his supplies in Linneus 
and distributing them to his customers in the stores near and far and 
to some extent in the large markets. He passed the whole of his life in 
this county, where he died in 1874. His first wife died in 1857, and 
some time afterward he married her sister as his second wife. She 
bore him two children, making him the father of five in all. 

W. G. Beckett grew to manhood on his father's farm and obtained 
his education at schools in Linneus. After leaving school he conducted 
the operations of the family homestead until 1877. He then went to 
Illinois and during the next two years attended a business college in 



620 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

Springfield in that state. In 1883 lie located where Purdin now stands 
and erected a building in which he opened a general store. The site for 
a town had been surveyed and laid out ten years before, but there was 
nothing but a saw mill, as has been stated, and railroad station to show 
any signs of progress toward a town, and there were no established 
roads to the place. 

Mr. Beckett, however, was not discouraged. He had come to the 
locality to do business and he determined to remain and accomplish his 
purpose. He carried on his store alone one year, and then took in two 
partners, H. H. Street and James Lee. Not long afterward he bought 
the interests of these gentlemen in the business, and again conducted it 
on his own account for a time. In 1895 he organized the Purdin Mer- 
cantile Company, with a capital stock of $30,000 and himself as pres- 
ident of the corporation. 

With a view to enlarging his business he erected in 1893 an addi- 
tion to the store house in which his enterprise is now conducted, the 
original structure having been occupied by him some years as a tenant. 
When he did this he had also in view the establishment of a bank in 
the town, and in reorganizing his business after building the addition 
to his store he gave up the drug department in order to make room for 
the bank. He carried out his purpose in 1894 by organizing the Bank 
of Purdin, a private banking institution with a capital of $5,000, which 
he conducted in his store until 1900, when the new bank building was 
put up, on the reorganization of the bank. Mr. Beckett was the first 
president of this institution and is still one of its directors. 

Mr. Beckett is a gentleman of extensive property and has been a 
forceful factor in the public life of the community. In addition to his 
extensive mercantile interests he owns and operates several farms in 
Linn county and some also in the Red river valley in Texas. He was 
also agent for the Chicago, Burlington & Kansas City Railroad for a 
period of thirteen years, and has been mayor of the village and town- 
ship treasurer, and has given the community good service in other posi- 
tions of importance. He is a Democrat politicallly, and while not an 
active partisan is loyal to his party and renders it good service on all 
occasions. 

On November 19, 1879, Mr. Beckett was united in marriage with 
Miss Sarah J. Martin, a native of Illinois. They have two children: 
Their son, Craig W., who is engaged in business with his father, and 
their daughter, Bessie M., who is still living in San Francisco. All the 
members of the family are widely known and stand high in the 
regard and esteem of the people throughout the whole extent of their 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 621 

acquaintance. In their home communities they have hosts of friends 
and are universally and deservedly popular. The father belongs to the 
Elks and the Odd Fellows, and is a member of the Christian church. 



JOSEPH T. DUNCAN 

Seeking nothing in life but the faithful discharge of every duty 
that lies before him and to make the most of his opportunities for 
advancement; caring nothing for prominence among men and the 
empty show of high social alliances or political elevation and influence ; 
and altogether averse to the cares and responsibilities of public office, 
Joseph T. Duncan of Parsons Creek township has steadfastly adhered 
to the occupation with which he began his career, and has made a grat- 
ifying success of it. 

His highest ambition in a material way has been to be a good 
farmer and get from his land proper returns for his labor, while mak- 
ing it a comfortable and attractive home for his family and a pleasant 
resort for the numerous friends of his household. That he has done this 
the united testimony of the whole population of his township would 
establish, and the condition and appearance of his farm would prove 
without any other evidence. It is a silent but most effective preacher 
of the benefits of forecast, calculation, thorough knowledge and faithful 
application, and its improvements show judgment and good taste in 
their construction and arrangement. 

Mr. Duncan was born on the old family homestead in this county 
on October 7, 1871. He is a brother of John H. Duncan, in a sketch of 
whom elsewhere in this volume the history of the family is briefly told. 
He was reared and educated in Linn county, and worked at home with 
his father until he reached the age of twenty years. He then began 
farming on his own account and has been doing this ever since with 
profit to himself and decided benefit to his own land and the township 
in general. 

The farm which he now owns, lives on and cultivates comprises 148 
acres, is very fertile and yields abundantly, responding with great 
readiness and liberality to the persuasive hand of its skillful husband- 
man. He has enriched it with good buildings, well-made fences and 
other necessary improvements, and in all respects made a model farm 
of it, and has done all this himself, for the land w-as unimproved and 
uncultivated when he took possession of it, and still almost in the condi- 
tion in which the wild men of the forest left it when, like a receding 



622 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

wave, they fell away before the onward march of civilization and 
progress. 

On April 18, 1894, Mr. Duncan was united in wedlock with Miss 
Susie A. Curtis, a daughter of Ashbill S. and Sarah (Thorne) Curtis, 
highly respected residents of Linn county for many years. The father, 
who died in this county in 1909, was born at Hobart, Lake county, 
Indiana, and was an early pioneer in California. The mother, who is 
still living here, 4s a native of Kentucky, but became a resident of 
Missouri at an early age. 

Mr. and Mrs. Duncan have had five children, four of whom are 
living, their sons Thomas G., Donnie A., Joseph L. and Morgan R., and 
all of them are still members of the parental family circle. The par- 
ents are members of the Christian church and zealous in helping to 
promote its interests and add to the value of its work for the good of 
the community. The father also belongs to the Modern Woodmen of 
America. In addition to his farming operations he carries on an active 
and profitable industry in raising and feeding live stock. He is favor- 
ably known and well esteemed throughout the county as an enterpris- 
ing and public-spirited citizen, an excellent and progressive farmer and 
a man of high character and commendable demeanor in all the relations 
of life. 



JOHN H. DUNCAN 

For sixty-two years the Duncans, father and son, have lived in 
Linn county and aided in pushing forward its progress and develop- 
ment; and for three-quarters of a century three generations of them 
have been residents of the state of Missouri, and each has turned a 
portion of the wilderness into productive farming land and made it 
fruitful with all the products of an advancing and ascending civiliza- 
tion. The immediate subject of this brief review, John H. Duncan, is 
now one of the enterprising and successful farmers of Parsons Creek 
township, following the vocation of his father and his grandfather, and 
adhering to it from his youth to the present time without interruption, 
and during the whole period in this county and the neighborhood in 
which he now lives. 

Mr. Duncan was born in this county on January 13, 1858, and is a 
son of Thomas Garland and Mildred (Gooch) Duncan, the former a 
native of Kentucky and the latter of this state. The father was brought 
to Boone county, Missouri, by his parents in 1837, when he was but four 
years old. His parents cleared and improved a farm from the wilder- 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 623 

ness in Boone county and died on it well advanced in years. Their 
son Thomas G. grew to manhood on that farm, and from it went forth 
as a volunteer in the Mexican War to aid in defending the honor of 
his country from the aggressions of a haughty foe. 

In 1849 he crossed the plains to California in company with two 
of his brothers, making the trip with ox teams. On his return to this 
state the next year he located in Linn county, and following the exam- 
ple of his father, took up a tract of wild land which he cleared and 
made a good farm of, living on it until his death in 1902. The mother 
was a daughter of Grideon Gooch, one of the very early pioneers of this 
county. She and her husband were the parents of fifteen children, six 
sons and nine daughters, and seven of the fifteen are still living. The 
mother died in 1894. Both parents were prominent in the Christian 
church in this section and very zealous in its service. They helped to 
organize its first congregation here and to build its first house of wor- 
ship in this locality. 

John H. Duncan was reared on his father's farm and obtained his 
education in the country school in its neighborhood. He assisted in 
clearing the farm and splitting rails for its necessary fences. At the 
age of twenty-one he began farming for himself, and has been doing 
this ever since. He studies his business and applies the knowledge he 
gains to his operations, keeping pace with the progress and improve- 
ment in methods, and has the reputation of being one of the most sys- 
tematic and successful farmers in his township, and one of the most 
enterprising and progressive. 

On November 9, 1879, Mr. Duncan was married to Miss Mary 
Howell, a daughter of Lilburn L. Howell, one of the pioneers of Linn 
county, whose history is briefly recounted on another page of this 
work. Mr. and Mrs. Duncan have one child, their daughter Ethel, who 
is now the wife of Brainard Harvey and resides on the home farm. The 
parents belong to the Christian church and are ardent workers for its 
best interests in the congregation in which they hold their membership. 

Mr. Duncan has witnessed the marvelous changes that have been 
made in the appearance and condition of Linn county, and has helped 
materially to bring them about. He has always been a warm advocate 
of progress and improvement, and has given positive proofs of his 
convictions in this respect by his earnest and serviceable support of all 
undertakings designed to keep up and quicken the advance. He is one 
of Linn county's most sturdy, sterling and useful citizens, and among 
the men most highly esteemed by its residents of every class and 
condition. 



624 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

JOSEPH BOTTS 

Belonging to one of the oldest families in Linn county, a family 
that has been among those who have longest demanded tribute from 
its fruitful soil in return for skillful and systematic labor bestowed 
upon it, and himself one of the leading farmers of Parsons Creek town- 
ship, Joseph Botts is deserving, in the fullest measure and from every 
point of view, of the elevated position he holds in the regard and good 
will of the people of his township and the residents of the county 
throughout its extent. 

Mr. Botts is a native of Howard county, this state, where he was 
born on January 25, 1848. He is a son of Seth and Elizabeth (Littrell) 
Botts, the former born in Tennessee and the latter of the same nativity 
as himself. The father was born on January 1, 1786, and grew to man- 
hood in his native state, and there contracted his first marriage, which 
was with a Miss Hicks, who died in Missouri. They came to this state 
by the river route at an early date in its history and located in Howard 
county, where they were extensively engaged in farming for a number 
of years. The father was a soldier in the War of 1812, and took part 
in the battle of New Orleans, in which the flower of the British army, 
crowned with laurels of victory from many a bloody field in the wars of 
continental Europe, went down to ignominious defeat under the unerr- 
ing rifles of the backwoodsmen of America, whose guns were pointed 
by ideas, charged with the munitions of liberty and fired in behalf of 
the hopes of mankind, and therefore never missed their mark, or were 
grounded at the feet of a conquering foe. 

V In 1834 the parents moved their family to Linn county and took 
up a wild tract of government land along Locust creek, and later the 
father added to his domain other tracts of value. Early in the forties 
he built a grist mill on Locust creek, which was the first structure of 
the kind in this part of the state, and for a number of years supplied 
the people with flour and its other products for many miles around it. 
A portion of the old mill dam is still to be seen; and although it is now, 
like mad old King Lear, crowned with the ivies and weeds of forgetful- 
ness and grief, it is still a memorial of the primitive period in this 
region, when it was a force of great consequence in progress and 
development. 

^ The father's second marriage, which united him to the mother of 
his son Joseph, was solemnized in this county, and by it he became the 
father of three sons and three daughters, of whom Joseph and three of 
his sisters are the only ones living. The sisters are: Nancy, now the 



HISTORY OF LmN COUNTY 635 

wife of Judge Thomas Evans of Meadville; Sarah E., the widow of J. 
H. Sidebottom, a sketch of whom will be found in this work; and Mary 
F., who is the wife of Wm. Geeren, and lives in this county. The 
father died on September 17, 1872, and the mother on September 24, 
1907. They belonged to the Baptist church and were leaders of that 
sect in this part of Missouri, holding services in their house before the 
sect had a church edifi,ce here. The father was an official in the church 
for many years. 

Joseph Botts grew to manhood in this county and obtained his edu- 
cation in the public schools and in private schools kept at his father's 
house. From his youth he has been engaged in farming and in over- 
seeing farm work ; and although he has had many temptations to follow 
other pursuits, he has steadfastly adhered to this, and by his industry, 
thrift and good management, he has made it profitable to himself and 
beneficial to his township and county throughout all the years of his 
connection with it. 

On December 20, 1866, he was married to Miss Almeda Lander, a 
native of Macon county, Missouri, and the daughter of Barney and May 
(Powell) Lander. Five children have been born of the union, all of 
whom are living: Virgil, who is a Linn county farmer; Lola, who is now 
the wife of Charles Harvey, and also resides in this county; Maude, 
who married with William Goff, and has her home in Linn county; 
Modie, who is the wife of Frank Bowen of Linn county; and Arlie, who 
is still living at home with his parents and assisting in the work on 
the farm. 

Looking on Linn county from an early date as his permanent home, 
Mr. Botts has always been deeply and intelligently interested in its 
progress and improvement and the welfare of its residents. He has 
been earnest and serviceable in support of all good agencies at work 
among its people, and in pushing every worthy project for its advance- 
ment. He is held in high estimation throughout the county as an 
enterprising and public-spirited citizen, of strict integrity, strong char- 
acter and genuine local patriotism of the finest quality. The people in 
all parts of the county regard him as one of their best and most 
representative citizens. 



LILBURN L. HOWELL 

Occupying the honorable and always revered position of a pioneer 
in this county, although a native of it, and being a connecting link join- 
ing the life of the present day, with its advanced development, rapid 
progress and long list of notable achievements already in its garner as 



636 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

a basis of further strides of development in this region, to the remote 
period of the county's history when the dawn of civilization was just 
breaking and beginning to flood the thirsty East with the golden radi- 
ance of its promise, Lilburn L. Howell of Clay township is a subject of 
unusual interest to the biographer as well as a man of much more than 
ordinary consequence in the estimation of the public. 

Mr. Howell was born in this county on February 6, 1839, and is a 
son of William L. and Frances (Slaten) Howell, natives of Hopkins 
county, Kentucky, where they were reared, educated and married. The 
father was a farmer in his native state, but as the section of it in which 
he lived was rather well settled and had all its institutions firmly 
established, and he longed for the freer life and larger opportunities 
of the frontier, he determined to seek his advancement in life in a newer 
and more undeveloped portion of the country. 

In 1833 he brought his family overland from his Kentucky home 
to this state and chose Linn county as his future residence. He took up 
a quarter section of government land three miles north of Meadville, 
and located on that. The land was all heavily timbered at the time, 
and without improvements of any kind. He put up a log cabin as a 
shelter for his family and began to clear and cultivate the soil. The 
dwelling had few comforts or conveniences, as we estimate such things 
now. Its chimney was constructed of sticks and mud, and all its other 
appointments were but little, if any, removed beyond that state of 
crudeness. But it had the sacred .character of a home, was a domestic 
altar, and the firm foundation of high and worthy hopes and enviable 
prospects. 

During his life the father improved several similar farms in Linn 
county, and finally died in 1872, at the age of sixty-three years, on the 
one now owned and occupied by his son Lilburn. He was one of the 
renowned hunters of this part of the state, and particularly successful 
in bringing down deer, wild turkeys and large game in general, even 
though the chase was at times hazardous and always required expert- 
ness with the rifle, especially when game became less plentiful in the 
region than it was when he first ''stuck his stake" and founded his 
household shrine in it. He was county assessor of Linn county in 1862 
and 1863. 

He and his wife were very prominent in the Methodist church in 
this locality, the father being one of the leaders of the sect in its early 
history here, and the mother also active in all church work. Eight of 
their children grew to maturity, their son Lilburn and seven of his sis- 
ters, but only four of them are now living. Their mother Jied in 1870. 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 627 

Their grandfather, James Howell, was also a native of Hopkins county, 
Kentucky, and came to Linn county, Missouri, in 1832, locating in Clay 
township, where he cleared and improved a farm. There were but 10 
families in the county at that time. He owned the only grind stone in 
this section and the neighbors and Indians came for miles around to 
use it. 

He was one of the first county judges elected in the county, and 
served in that capacity for a number of years. In 1849 he crossed the 
plains to California with ox teams, but instead of hunting for gold in 
that state he gave his attention to farming, remaining there until his 
death. He was married twice and became the father of seven sons and 
by the two unions, four by the first and three by the second. 

Lilburn L. Howell was reared to manhood on his father's farm in 
this county, which he helped to clear and in the cultivation of which 
he was employed from an early age, assisting in breaking up the ground 
for the first time when he was but ten years old. He remained at home 
until he reached the age of twenty, and then began farming on his own 
account, moving to Kansas for the purpose and remaining there until 
1866. In that year he returned to this county, and here he has lived 
and labored industriously and profitably ever since, clearing and im- 
proving the farm on which he lives and making it one of the most valu- 
able in the township in which it is located. 

While living in Kansas Mr. Howell served in the militia of that 
state and aided in driving out of it the Confederate army under the 
command of General Price. He was present when the city of Lawrence 
was raided by the Confederates and witnessed many of the incidents 
attending that event. He also saw many other impressive outgrowths 
of the sectional feeling, which was intense in degree and violent in 
expression all along the border, as it always has been everywhere in 
border warfare. 

Mr. Howell was married in 1859 to Miss Amanda Pennington, a 
daughter of Garrett and Susan (Pruitt) Pennington, early arrivals in 
this county. Five children were born of the union, all of whom are now 
deceased but two : Mary, who is the wife of John H. Duncan, a sketch 
of whom will be found in this work; and Leona, the wife of Robert P. 
Hincher, both of them residents of Linn county. Their mother died in 
1886. The father is a member of the Methodist Episcopal church and 
zealous in the service of the congregation to which he belongs. He is 
one of the most highly respected citizens in the county, as well as one 
of the oldest in length of life among its people. 



638 HTSTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 

JAMES H. SIDEBOTTOM 

(Deceased) 

The untimely death of the late James H. Sidebottom, one of the 
intelligent, enterprising and successful farmers of Parsons Creek town- 
ship, on August 30, 1884, at the early age of forty-four years, when he 
was in the prime of his manhood and fullness of his vigor, cast a gloom 
over the section of the county in which he had lived and labored, and 
called forth strong expressions of regret in many other localities. For 
Mr. Sidebottom was a good man and a useful citizen, and had the 
unstinted respect of everybody who knew him in all parts of Linn 
county. 

Mr. Sidebottom was born in Mason county, Kentucky, on May 13, 
1840, and was a son of Eev. Robinson E. and Nancy (Burton) Side- 
bottom, the story of whose lives is briefly given in a sketch of his 
brother, Eugene Sidebottom, to be found elsewhere in this work. James 
was seventeen years old when the family moved to this county and 
located on an unimproved tract of land between Laclede and Linneus. 
He assisted in clearing this farm and bringing it under cultivation, 
remaining at home until his marriage on July 21, 1867, to Miss Sarah 
E. Botts, a daughter of Seth and Elizabeth (Littrell) Botts, and a sister 
of Joseph Botts, in a sketch of whom on another page of this volume the 
family history will be found. 

After their marriage James H. Sidebottom and his bride located 
on the farm now occupied by the family, which was also an unbroken 
tract of timber when they took possession of it. They erected a log 
cabin and cleared the land to the extent of 250 acres during the life of 
the husband, and were rapidly making it one of the desirable rural 
homes of the township, when death ended his labors, and left to others 
the completion of the good work he had begun and so succseefuUy 
carried forward. During the Civil War he served in the state militia, as 
he was always ready to do anything he could for the benefit of his own 
locality, his state and the whole country, and he deemed the preserva- 
tion of the Union a matter of the utmost importance to all mankind. 

He and his wife were the parents of nine children, six of whom are 
living: Thomas B., Joseph C, David G., Lenora (who is the wife of J. 
L. Evans of Meadville), Seth E., and Florence (the wife of W. H. Mor- 
rison of Livingston county). The mother is still living on the farm 
she helped to bring to fruitfulness, and is still as warmly interested 
as ever in the welfare of the township and county in which she has her 



HISTOEY OF LIN^^ COUNTY 639 

home, the residents of which regard her as one of the most estimable, 
deserving and useful matrons among them. 

During his life Mr. Sidebottom showed his interest in the progress 
and improvement of his locality by earnest support of every commend- 
able undertaking designed to promote its advancement and add to its 
influence and importance in the state. He also had a sincere and prac- 
tical regard for the comfort and betterment of its people in every way, 
and did all he could to improve conditions for them, morally, mentally, 
socially and materially. His public spirit and progressiveness were 
highly appreciated by all who had the benefit of them, and wherever 
he was known he was warmly esteemed for his genuine worth and ele- 
vated and useful citizenship. 



WALTER PENDLETON 

Grandson of one of the two first white settlers in Linn county, and 
following in the footsteps of grandfather and father in tilling the soil 
of the region the former helped materially to open to civilization, Wal- 
ter Pendleton of Marceline township has an interest in the county 
imusual in its character and basis, and embodying historical elements 
that in the nature of the case can appertain to but few men in any com- 
munity. His grandfather sowed the seed of the present civilization of 
the county, and his father and himself have helped to mature and reap 
the crop, so far as it has advanced to the present time (1912). 

James F. Pendleton, the pioneer alluded to, and his companion, 
William Howell, residents of Howard county, came into the Locust 
Creek country in 1830 on a hunting expedition. They found the coun- 
try greatly in accordance with their desires and determined to return 
and settle on some of its fertile land. Accordingly, in the fall of 1831, 
they came back to the region and built the two first cabins erected 
within the borders of the county, as it is now, choosing their location in 
what is now Locust Creek township, and fixing their claim in Section 14, 
Township 58, Range 21, which is now the most southwestern section of 
that township. They built a cabin and fenced five or six acres of their 
land that fall, then returned to their Howard county homes. The next 
spring they moved their families to the new land they had selected, and 
thus became the first bona fide white settlers in Linn county. 

Walter Pendleton was born at Laclede on August 13, 1870, and is 
a son of Larkin C. and Ada (Spurling) Pendleton, also natives of 
Missouri. The father was a carpenter and clerk in times of peace, and a 



630 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

valiant soldier in the Union army for four years during the Civil War. 
He died in Chillicothe, Missouri, in May, 1906. The mother is still 
living and has her home in Marceline. They were the parents of three 
children, two sons and one daughter, all of whom are living, but Walter 
is the only one of the three who resides in Linn county. 

He was reared and educated in this county and began life as an 
apprentice to the printing trade in the office of the Mar,celine Journal 
under the instruction of Dr. Smith, who was then the proprietor of the 
paper. He w^orked at the trade until 1897, then began the farming 
industry, which he has conducted ever since. He is progressive and 
successful in his undertaking, and is generally recognized as one of 
the leading farmers in the township with reference to the modernness 
and intelligence of his methods and the breadth of view and enterprise 
with which he carries on his operations, keeping pace with the progress 
in agriculture and securing the best attainable returns from all the 
land he has under cultivation. 

On March 10, 1897, Mr. Pendleton was united in marriage with 
Miss Louisa A. Wyant, a daughter of George W. and Louisa (Baugher) 
Wyant. They became residents of Linn county in 1855, moving to this 
state from Virginia, and locating in Baker township, where they owned 
a large tract of land. In 1889 they moved to what is now Marceline 
township, and here the father died in August, 1910. The mother is still 
living, making her home with her son-in-law, the subject of this sketch, 
where she enjoys the respect and regard of the people of all classes in a 
marked degree because of her genuine worth. 

Mr. and Mrs. Pendleton have three children, their daughter Irene 
and their sons Cason W. and Page R. The parents belong to the Meth- 
odist Episcopal church. They are well and favorably known through- 
out the county and none of its citizens is more highly respected than 
are they. For they perform with fidelity and energy every duty they 
owe to their township and the surrounding country, take their part 
cheerfully and effectively in all projects for the betterment of their com- 
munity and give helpful countenance and support to all good agencies 
at work among its people. In connection with the material welfare of 
the region in which they live, and its development and improvement, 
they are energetic and progressive, aiding in every way they can to 
promote its advancement at the most rapid rate consistent with whole- 
some growth and enduring benefit. 

To read or reflect over the life story of this gentleman and the his- 
torical suggestions it calls up is like opening a door into an old romance 
or retracing the footsteps of history — not her shining footsteps which 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 631 

mark her progress along the high course of great affairs, but those she 
has made in this region in her useful walks among the sturdy founders 
and builders of the county. The story and what it opens the way to, 
carry the mind back instinctively to the time when this was a pristine 
wilderness, still inhabited by its wild denizens of man and beast, and 
when the region was yet in its sleep of ages, awaiting the commanding 
might of mind to call it to arise and greet its lord, the civilization that 
was to come. This is an oft-told tale in American chronicles, and it is 
enough to allude to it here without any attempt to narrate it over again. 
It inevitably suggests, also, the striking contrast between that period 
and the present, and emphasizes anew w^hat human enterprise has done 
in the way of conquest over the American wilds and the development 
of their resources for the benefit and service of mankind. 



ALBERT P. SWAN 

There is always a peculiar interest attaching to the founders of new 
commonwealths, .counties, cities or communities. Something of pater- 
nity seems to belong to them, and all the subsequent achievements of 
what they found apears to reflect credit on them. Albert P. Swan bears 
this relation to the city of Marceline. He was one of its pioneer resi- 
dents, helped to start it on its beneficent way of progress and of benefit 
to the surrounding country, aided in fencing in the land on which it 
stands, and took a forceful part in laying the foundations of its civic, 
educational and religious institutions, and he now beholds the result of 
the prevision and enterprise of himself and his fellows in founding the 
city, and sees that that result is good in every way. 

Mr. Swan was born near Birmingham, Oakland county, Michigan, 
on July 17, 1842, and is a son of Avery and Catherine (Ackerman) 
Swan, the former a native of Connecticut and the latter of the state of 
New York. The father was a farmer and moved from New York state 
to Oakland county, Michigan, when that region was still an almost 
unbroken wilderness. He cleared and improved a farm there, then 
sold it and moved to St. Clair county, where he did the same work over 
again. Some years later he changed his residence to Macomb county 
and made a new home' out of another tract of the wilds. He was born 
in 1806 and died at Pontiac, Michigan, in 1880. The mother died near 
Birmingham in 1872, on September 15th. They had ten children, six 
sons and four daughters, and five of the number are living. John Swan, 
the grandfather of these children, was bom and reared in Connecticut. 



633 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

He became a pioneer of Michigan and died in Oakland county of that 
state. 

Albert P. Swan was reared in Oakland and St. Clair counties, Mich- 
igan, attended the country schools and aided his father in clearing one 
of the two farms he redeemed from the wilderness and made valuable 
with improvements. After finishing his education he engaged in farm- 
ing in his native state, and there he continued his operations in this 
useful line of endeavor until 1869, when he came to Missouri and 
located on the Linn county farm which is still his home. This he has 
improved until it is one of the best, most productive and most desirable 
in the county in proportion to its size, and one of its most attractive 
rural homes. 

Mr. Swan was married on April 13, 1865, to Miss Elizabeth Lang- 
worthy, a daughter of William and Lydia (Latham) Langworthy, pio- 
neers of Michigan, where they both died, Mr, and Mrs. Swan have had 
nine children, seven of whom are living: Estella, the wife of Edward 
Anderson of Linn county; Kate, the widow of the late G, A. Beech; 
Cora, the wife of Frank Porter, also a resident of this county; Arthur 
L. and Alice L., twins, the latter being now the widow of the lat« 
Arthur M. Haley; and Ruth E. and Ernest W., who are living at home 
with their parents, with whom Mrs. Haley also dwells. 

Mr. Swan gives his political faith and support to the principles of 
the Republican party, but he is not and never has been desirous of pub- 
lic office, finding plenty to occupy his time and energies in attention to 
the requirements of his farm and the ordinary duties of citizenship. 
He and his wife are members of the Methodist Episcopal church and 
earnestly interested in its work for every good purpose, as they are in 
all worthy undertakings and agencies for the betterment of their com- 
munity and township and the substantial welfare of their residents. 
They are well known in all parts of the county and everywhere are 
highly respected. 



WARD L. BALLARD 

This interesting subject, who is one of the model farmers of Buck- 
lin township, has had experience in agricultural pursuits in several dif- 
ferent places and under widely varying circumstances. He was reared 
from the age of eleven years on a farm in one of the counties of this 
state on its southern border; he lived on and brought into market as a 
partially improved farm a tract of unbroken prairie in Western Kan- 
sas, and he has been one of Linn county's substantial and progressive 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 633 

farmers during the last twenty-three years. If a man can learn the art 
of farming through study and experience in its operations Mr. Ballard 
ought to be a master of it, and his farm and all his work on it show that 
he is. 

Ward L. Ballard was born in Bradford county, Pennsylvania, on 
February 13, 1865, and is a son of Alexander and Eliza (Bratt) Bal- 
lard, also natives of that state. The parents moved their family to 
Missouri in 1876 and located at Thayer, in Linn county, where the father 
owned 180 acres of land, and on this they lived twenty-five years. They 
then moved to Brookfield in this county, and there they ended their 
days, the father dying on December 10, 1905, and the mother on Decem- 
ber 10, 1910. 

The father was a merchant and lumberman in Pennsylvania, but in 
Missouri he devoted himself wholly to farming as long as he kept up 
active pursuits. He and his wife were zealous members of the Meth- 
odist Episcopal Church South. They had three sons and two daughters, 
all of whom are living, and all but one of them reside in Linn county. 
Joseph Ballard, grandfather of Ward L., was a farmer in Pennsylvania, 
where he died. His ancestors were English people, some of whom came 
to this country at an early date and became loyal and patriotic Ameri- 
can citizens, as all their descendants have been, wherever they have 
lived and whatever their pursuits. 

Ward L. Ballard was educated in the public schools and assisted 
his father in the work on the home farm until he was twenty-years of 
age. In 1885 he went to Norton county, Kansas, and took up a tract of 
government land, which he lived on and improved for three years, then 
sold it. In 1888 he returned to Missouri and bought a farm in Linn 
county, which is still his home and has been ever since. It comprises 
230 acres, and when he purchased it was only partially developed and 
under cultivation. The industry and intelligence he has applied to its 
cultivation during the last twenty-three years have made it one of the 
choice farms of the township in which it is located and worthy of fair 
comparison with any of its size in the county. 

On Jan. 11, 1888, Mr. Ballard was united in marriage with Miss 
Mollie Sights, a daughter of Isaac and Margaret (Wood) Sights of 
Linn. Six children have been born of the union, all of whom are living. 
They are : Vena C, Herbert R., Mabel M., Myron W., Marguerite and 
Edward 0. They are all yet members of the parental family circle, and 
while aiding in the work on the farm, they also add to the attractive- 
ness of the home as a social center and resort for the numerous friends 
and admiring acquaintances of the household. 



634 HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 

The father is a Eepublican in political faith and allegiance, and 
loyal to his party and zealous in its service. But he has never sought 
or desired official station and has steadily preferred the freedom and 
independence of private life. He and the members of his family attend 
the Methodist Episcopal church. He takes an active interest in the im- 
provement of his township and is considered one of its most estimable 
and useful citizens from every point of view. 



ROBERT K. KINNEY 

After living to the age of tw^enty-eight years in his native state of 
New York, and then twelve and a half years in Kansas, where he was a 
pioneer, Eobert K. Kinney, one of the best known and most highly 
esteemed farmers of Bucklin township, chose Linn county, Missouri, as 
his home and has lived here almost thirty years. He his been a farmer 
here ever since his arrival in the county and has lived all the time on the 
farm which he now owns, occupies and cultivates. He has also mingled 
freely with the people of the county, borne his full share of the labor 
and care connected with their industries, done whatever he could to pro- 
mote their welfare, and contributed in every way ojDen to him to the 
progress and improvement of his township and the whole county. He 
is justly esteemed as a forceful and useful citizen, with an active prac- 
tical and productive interest in the locality of his home and full of zeal 
in aiding in its advance. 

Mr. Kinney was born at Toddsville, Otsego county, New York, on 
May 14, 1844. His father and mother, Joseph A. and Lorena (Mur- 
dock) Kinney, were also born and reared in that state. The father was 
a physician and practiced his profession in his native state for a period 
of fifteen years, or until 1868, when he came to Missouri and bought a 
farm in this county seven miles north of Brookfield, on which he died 
in 1884, and wh«xvc- his wife died in 1901. They were the parents of four 
sons and one daughter. The daughter died some years ago. The sons 
are all living and all resident of Linn county, as they have been for 
a long time. 

William Kinney, the grandfather of Eobert K., was a native of 
Salem, Massachusetts. He moved from there to the state of New York, 
where he operated a distillery and a cotton mill for many years. He 
then moved to Kentucky and carried on his business in that state, and 
there he died at an advanced age, after a long and successful business 
career, and in the full enjoyment of the respect and good will of every- 



HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 635 

body that knew Mm. For he was an upright and straightforward man 
in all the relations of life and made himself a very worthy and useful 
citizens wherever he lived. 

Robert K. Kinney obtained his education at a good academy in Ot- 
sego county, New York, and after completing it engaged in the draying 
business until 1872. In that year he moved to Mitchell county, Kansas, 
where he was among the earliest settlers. He took up a tract of gov- 
ernment land in that county and lived on and farmed and improved 
it for twelve and a half years. In 1884 he came to this county and 
bought the farm in Bucklin township on which he now resides, and 
which he has brought to an advanced state of improvement and pro- 
ductiveness. The farm comprises 112 acres and is all under skillful 
and studious cultivation, for Mr. Kinney is a progressive and wide- 
awake farmer and a thorough master of his business. 

Mr. Kinney was married in the state of New York on February 23, 
1865, to Miss Mary E. Hilts, a native of the same state as himself. They 
have had six sons and two daughters. One of the daughters has died, 
but all the rest of the children are living. They are: William F., 
James A., Robert K., Jr., Howard, Bert and Calvin, sons, and their 
sister Opal. All stand well in the estimation of the people who know 
them and are altogether worthy of the high regard in which they are 
held. 

The father is a Republican in political faith and allegiance and has 
long been an active and servicable worker for his party. While living 
in Kansas he filled all the offices in the gift of the people of his to\vnship5 
and for eight years served as county clerk. He is a man of force and 
influence in this county, but he has never sought a political office here, 
having found himself always sufficiently occupied with the management 
of his farm and the ordinary duties of citizenship without any of the 
cares and responsibilities of official station or public life in any capacity. 
In fraternal circles he is connected with the Independent Order of Odd 
Fellows and takes a cordial and helpful interest in the affairs of his 
Lodge and those of the fraternity in general. 

His long residence in the county and his public spirit in its behalf 
have made him well known in all parts of it and won him the regard 
and good will of all its people. His farm is something of a historic 
landmark also. The old town of Thayer, which never realized the 
promise of its birth, and has practically gone off the map, was laid out 
on this farm, and for a time the land was looked upon as very likely to 
become a profitable asset in the mercantile and commercial life of this 
part of the county. It has been profitable to Mr. Kinney, for he has 



636 HISTOEY OF LIXN COUXTY 

made it so by his enterprise and progressiveness, and his is now one of 
the choice farms of its size in Bucklin township. 



REV. WALTER TORMEY 

Living now retired, and enjoying a rest richly earned in many 
years of devotion to the welfare of his fellow men and active labor in 
their behalf, and crowned with the reverent regard and affectionate 
esteem of all who knew him, this faithful servant of the Catholic church 
and most worthy representative of its priesthood is peaceful, pros- 
perous and happy in his advancing years of present worldly comfort 
and grateful reminiscense. He has abandoned the dusty, crowded and 
jostling highway of life for one of its shadiest and most agreeable 
by-lanes. The din of traffic and worldly strife has no longer magic for 
his ear. The myriad footfall on the city's stony walks is but noise or 
nothing to him now. He has run his race of toil or ambition, his day's 
work is accomplished. 

Yet he is not indifferent to the welfare of his kind, but is as ever, 
deeply interested in all that can promote it and readily responsive to 
every call on him for aid in the effort to secure it. This devout, capable 
and conscientious "Father in Rome" is a native of Ireland, and was 
born in County Cavan on June 29, 1850, a son of Walter and Rose 
(McCormick) Tormey, who were born and reared in the same country 
and county as himself. The father was farmer, millwright and mill 
owner, and died a short time before the birth of his son. The mother 
lived until 1907. 

Rev. Father Tormey grew to manhood in his native county. His 
course of instruction, after the elementary and preparatory periods, 
was all directed toward fitting him for his chosen work as a priest, and 
some time before it was completed in the merely scholastic department, 
he had made choice of his future home and field of operation. In 1871 
he followed his desire by emigrating to the United States, and soon 
after his arrival in this country entered St. Bonaventure's College at 
Allegany, New York, as a student of theology according to the teachings 
of the Catholic church, and a candidate for admission to its priesthood. 
He was graduated from that excellent institution in June, 1874, and at 
once came to Missouri and located in St. Joseph. 

On August 6th of that year he was ordained by Bishop Hogan and 
assigned to missionary work in Atchison and the adjoining counties. 
He built a church at Phelps and planted a colony at Irish Grove. After 
remaining at his first assignment three years he was called to St. 




REV. WALTER TOBMEY 



HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 637 

Joseph, where he passed ten months in charge of a parish whose pastor 
was away on leave of absence for the benefit of his health. On December 
31, 1878, he arrived in Brookfield and assumed charge of the church in 
that city which was founded in 1859, through the admirable zeal and 
industry of Bishop Hogan. 

This parish at that time contained about thirty-five families, and 
these were not permanent residents, as the region was then in a 
migratory state. He succeeded, however, in maintaining the size of his 
congregation, even under such an unfavorable condition, as he was as 
zealous in securing the newcomers as he was regretful in parting with 
those who left, and in a short time began to show his efficiency and 
influence by making a steady increase in the number of his com- 
municants. 

A year or two after his arrival he founded a school, which con- 
tinued in useful operation for a number of years, and in 1894, by which 
time the parish had increased the number of its families to one hundred, 
he built the present church ediflce to meet the growing requirements of 
his congregation. His labors were arduous, and often very trying, but 
his industry was equal to every demand, and his patience and persever- 
ance overcame all difficulties. The church continued to grow in mem- 
bership and power, and he constantly gained in influence and popularity. 

In 1908 Father Tormey retired from active church work, having 
been engaged in it continuously for over twenty-four years, and during 
almost the whole of that period in fields that were new and undeveloped, 
and which therefore required more than ordinary exertion, adapta- 
bility endurance and steadfastness in application. But his usefulness 
to the church has not been wholly expended in his own charges in its 
service. He has assisted very materially in building up its strength, 
exalting its reputation and enriching its conquests in this section of the 
country generally, and his name is revered among its adherents, as his 
fidelity, ability, devotion to duty and his high character and the value 
of his services entitle it to be. He is now the oldest Catholic priest in 
northern Missouri, except Father Kennedy, of Chillicothe in Livings- 
ton county. 



CORNELIUS BUCKLEY 

Although born and reared to the age of twenty years in a foreign 
land Cornelius Buckley of Yellow Creek township in this county, where 
he operates a large and productive farm, has shown his deep and abid- 
ing interests in the welfare of this country and his willingness to risk 



638 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

everything in its defense in the time of war and employ all his energies 
for its good in time of peace. He has worked at different industries in 
various parts of the country, helping to magnify its industrial and com- 
mercial greatness, and when armed force threatened the destruction of 
the Union he took his place in the army of defense and helped to save 
it from that awful disaster, in which the welfare of the whole human 
family would have been seriously affected and human progress would 
have been set back and hampered for many years, if not for generations. 

Mr. Buckley is a native of County Cork, Ireland, where his life be- 
gan on October 23, 1834. His parents, Cornelius and Mary (Horrigan) 
Buckley, were also born and reared in that county. There also they 
were educated and married, and there they died after long years of use- 
fulness, and their remains were buried in the soil that was hallowed by 
their labors. They were the parents of three children, two sons and one 
daughter, their son Cornelius being the only one of the three now living. 

He remained in his native land until he reached the age of twenty 
years, then came to the United States, making the trip on a sailing 
vessel and landing at Boston in 1854. He went at once to Sandwich, 
Massachusetts, where he worked in a glass factory for five years. In 
1859 he came West to Rockford, Illinois, and during the next three 
years he farmed in the vicinity of that city. In 1862 he enlisted in 
Company A, Ninetieth Illinois Volunteer Infantry, and in that company 
he served to the close of the Civil War, being mustered out of the army 
in June, 1865, with the rank of corporal and receiving his discharge in 
a camp near the city of Washington, after the grand review of the whole 
Federal army, in which he participated with what was left of his com- 
pany. 

During the war Mr. Buckley took part in the following battles: 
Coldwater, Vicksburg and Jackson, Mississippi ; Resaca, Atlanta, Love- 
joy 's Station, Rome, Kenesaw Mountain, Dallas, Jonesboro, Fort Mc- 
Allister and Savannah, Georgia ; Missionary Ridge and Knoxville, Ten- 
nessee; Charleston and Columbia, South Carolina; Bentonville, North 
Carolina, and many minor engagements. He was in the Fifteenth army 
corps under General John A. Logan, and his regiment participated in 
some of the hardest fighting of the war. At Missionary Ridge he was 
wounded in the left arm. 

After his discharge from the army he returned to Rockford, Illi- 
nois, and resumed his farming operations. In November, 1867, he 
moved to this state and took up his residence in Yellow Creek township 
on a farm which he then purchased and has ever since occupied as his 

home. His farm now comprises 550 acres, and he has the greater part 
4 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 639 

if it under cultivation. The land was unbroken prairie when he bought 
it, but his assiduous industry and vigor and skill in cultivating it during 
the last forty-four years have transformed it into a very productive and 
highly improved estate, with good buildings and other necessary struc- 
tures, and it is now one of the most comfortable and valuable country 
homes in the township. 

Mr. Buckley was married on September 29, 1867, to Miss Honora 
Power, like himself a native of County Cork, Ireland. She came to the 
United States in 1862 to join a sister here who was then living at Rock- 
ford, Illinois. Mr. and Mrs. Buckley have four children: Mary A., 
David J., an account of whose life will be found in this history; Cor- 
nelius, Jr., and William J. The mother is still living, as are all four of 
the children. All the members of the family belong to the catholic 
church. The father is a Democrat in political faith and allegiance and 
serves his party loyally and with efficiency on all occasions. He has 
served as township trustee and as a member of the local school board. 

Mr. Buckley is well known in all parts of Linn county as an ex- 
cellent farmer and a wide-awake and progressive citizen, deeply and in- 
telligently interested in every project for the improvement of his lo- 
cality and always willing to do his full share of the work necessary to 
promote any commendable undertaking designed to advance its welfare 
and enhance the substantial and enduring good if its people. Every- 
where the residents of the county hold him in high esteem, and he is 
altogether worthy of the regard and good will they bestow upon him. 



DAVID J. BUCKLEY 

Having made an excellent record as a public official in different po- 
sitions in the service of his county and state, and now making one 
equally as good as an enterprising and progressive farmer, and having 
in addition wrought well and successfully in business, David J. Buckley 
of Yellow Creek township, former sheriff of Linn county, has shown 
and is showing himself to be a resourceful and adaptable man, ready 
for any duty and well qualified for its faithful and intelligent perform- 
ance. 

Mr. Buckley was born in the township of his present residence on 
May 29, 1870, and is a son of Cornelius and Honora (Power) Buckley, 
a sketch of whose lives will be found in this work. He grew to man- 
hood on his native heath and was educated in the district schools in the 
neighborhood of his father's farm. Until he was thirty-four years old 



640 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

lie remained at home and assisted his father in the labors of cultivating 
the farm, during the last several years of the time managing the farm 
on his own account and making a first rate job of it. 

In 1901 he was appointed a clerk in the state legislature and served 
through the session of that year. In 1902 he was made assistant grain 
inspector from the Kansas City office, and this position he held until the 
spring of 1903, when he resigned it. The next year, 1904, he was elected 
sheriff of the county, being the only Democratic candidate who w^as suc- 
cessful in that election. He served his full term of two years and at the 
end of it declined a renomination for the office. 

In 1907 he moved to Kansas City, this state, and accepted employ- 
ment with the Kansas City Grain company as weigher and inspector of 
grain. At the end of eight months he resigned this position to take 
that of superintendent of the prison barns in Jefferson City. This place 
was not agreeable to him, and in February, 1909, he gave it up and 
turned his attention to farming, in which he has ever since been engaged. 
He has 148 acres of land, all under cultivation, and the farm is well im- 
proved with good buildings and other necessary structures. It is com- 
pletely equipped with all necessary machinery of the most approved 
modern type, and the work done on it is pushed with vigor and energy 
and directed by intelligence and skill according to the most advanced 
methods of farming. 

In politics Mr. Buckley is a pronounced Democrat of strong con- 
victions and great devotion to the interests of his party. He is an active 
and effective worker for it in all campaigns, and has been a member of 
its county central committee during the last twelve years and is now the 
chairman of that body. He served two years as township trustee, an 
equal length of time as constable, and has been influential in the councils 
of his party from his early manhood. In church relations he is a 
Catholic and in fraternal life a Knight of Columbus. He takes an active 
and serviceable part in the work of each of these organizations, and his 
membership in them is highly valued by their other members. 

On September 8, 1906, Mr. Buckley was united in marriage with 
Miss Nell Bowyer, a daughter of Thomas B. and Mary A. (Alexander) 
Bowyer of Linneus, whose lives are briefly given in a sketch of them in 
another part of this volume. Mr. and Mrs. Buckley have two children, 
their daughter Honora C. and their son John B. The father is well 
and favorably known throughout the county and in many parts of the 
state beyond its borders, and everywhere he enjoys the respect and re- 
gard of the people in a marked degree because of his genuine worth as 
a man and citizen. 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 641 

THOMAS B. GLASGOW 

Although a native of the agricultural county of Chariton in this 
state, and reared on a farm with no pressing desire to seek any other 
occupation than that of his forefathers for several generations, Thomas 
B. Glasgow, one of the best and best known farmers of Yellow Creek 
township in this county, has had a life of considerable adventure and 
excitement at times. He has farmed, he has freighted a,cross the plains 
into the mining regions, and he has lived in a mining camp and been 
engaged in mining. After it all he returned to farming and has fol- 
lowed that pursuit on the land which he now cultivates and has without 
interruption for nearly forty-six years. 

Mr. Glasgow's life began on July 25, 1844, on his father's farm in 
Chariton county, and on another belonging to his father in Iowa he 
lived and worked and attended the country schools until he reached 
the age of eighteen, having about the same experiences and opportuni- 
ties as the sons of other farmers in the neighborhood. He is a son of 
Marmaduke and Elizabeth (Kinney) Glasgow, who came to this state 
from Richland county, Ohio, making the trip by the river route, down 
the Ohio and up the Mississippi and Missouri, and arriving at their 
destination in 1839. The father was a farmer in his native state, and he 
engaged in the same pursuit in this state. 

After a residence of about five years in Chariton, and soon after the 
birth of Thomas, the family moved to a farm near Centreville, Iowa, the 
county seat of Appanoose county in that state. This farm the father 
bought after selling the one he owned in Chariton .county in this state. 
The mother died on the Iowa farm in 1852, and sometime afterward the 
father married again. He died in 1857. He was the father of five sons 
and three daughters, all of whom are now deceased but Thomas and his 
sister, Mrs. Mattie Sevier, who is also a resident of Linn county. The 
father was a member of the Methodist Episcopal church and prominent 
as a leader in its work. 

His son Thomas even in his youth took up the battle of life for him- 
self and ever since has made his own way in the world. In 1862, when 
he was but eighteen years of age, he engaged in freighting across the 
plains to Denver, and after following this line of adventurous and often 
hazardous work for a time, toiled in the mines at Central City, Colorado, 
in the hope of making a strike and a fortune. But he was not success- 
ful in the measure of his hopes and desires, and in 1866 determined to 
return to farming. The quiet life on a good farm wore a winning smile 
for him after a few years of the loneliness and danger and hardship of 



642 HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 

the plains and the high excitement and no less peril of the mining camp. 

Accordingly he came back to Missouri and bought a portion of his 
farm of 880 acres in Yellow Creek township, Linn county. Here he has 
lived and been energetically and profitably engaged in farming ever 
since, in,creasing his acreage and enlarging his operations as he has 
prospered, and finally making himself one of the leading and most 
extensive farmers in his township. He has his farm well improved and 
under an advanced state of cultivation and productiveness, all of which 
is the result of his own energy, industry and excellent management of 
his affairs. 

On June 11, 1875, Mr. Glasgow was married to Miss Emma Ander- 
son, a daughter of John and Mary (Hubbard) Anderson. Two children 
have been born of the union: Ora B., who is now the wife of Thomas 
Stauber of St. Catharine, Linn county, and Cora E., who is now the wife 
of Lawrence Miller of St. Catharine, a sketch of whom will be found in 
this history. Mr. and Mrs. Glasgow are members of the Methodist 
Episcopal Church South. 



WILLIAM G. HUGHES 

Although born and reared in Missouri, William G. Hughes, the 
present postmaster of Bucklin, has lived in Linn county only sixteen 
years, but during the whole of his residence in the county has been in 
business as a leading druggist and conducting the oldest and one of 
the best established commercial emporiums in the city of his residence 
at this time. He located in Bucklin on August 14, 1896, and at once 
bought the pharmacy of W. E. Shook, the first started in the city, and 
one that has long enjoyed a large trade and great popularity. 

Mr. Hughes was born at New Cambria, Macon county, Missouri, 
on March 23, 1876. He is a son of Hugh H. and Eachel (Williams) 
Hughes, natives of Wales, the father born at Garthbeibias Dalmaen 
Parish, in Montgomeryshire, where, for a number of years he was en- 
gaged in farming. He came to the United States on May 16, 1841, and 
first located at Ebensburg, Cambria county, Pennsylvania, where he 
and his wife were married in September, 1860. They moved to Missouri 
in 1869 and took up their residence in New Cambria, Macon county, 
where the father continued his farming operations until his death in 
August, 1899. The mother died there in 1885. 

They had five sons and one daughter, all of whom are now deceased 
but two of the sons, Hoovey W., of New Cambria and our subject. The 



HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 643 

father was a vocalist aud taught singing for over thirty years. His 
father, whose name was also Hugh Hughes, was born in the same shire 
as his son, and came to the United States in 1841. He was bom in 1790 
and died on his farm in Pennsylvania in 1866, at the age of seventy-six 
and highly respected by all who knew him. 

William G. Hughes grew to manhood and obtained his academic 
education at New Cambria, attending the common schools. He began 
making his own living by clerking in a dry goods store for a short time 
after leaving school. In 1894, when he was eighteen years of age, he 
entered the St. Louis College of Pharmacy, but was able to remain but 
one year. Thereafter he worked in East St. Louis for a short time, then 
went back to the farm and remained until August, 1896, when he came 
to Bucklin and purchased the drug business which he is still conduct- 
ing, as has been stated. 

On January 22, 1905, he was appointed postmaster of Bucklin, and 
he has held the office continuously from then to the present time. He 
has also served as alderman and city assessor one term each, and made 
a record that was highly commended by the people of the city in 
each of these offices, as he is doing in that of postmaster. He is con- 
scientious, painstaking and zealous in attention to his official duties, 
giving every detail of his office his personal care, with as much fidelity 
and assiduity as he displays in his private business. 

Mr. Hughes has been an active and effective working member of 
the Republican party from the dawn of his manhood. He is also a 
member of the Order of Freemasons, the Order of Elks and the Order 
of Odd Fellows, and takes an earnest interest in the work of each of 
his lodges. He was married on June 10, 1905, to Miss Frances M. 
Riley, a daughter of Jasper J. and Miriam (Harper) Riley of Richmond 
in Ray county, this state. Mr. Hughes is a very active and progressive 
man in regard to the improvement of the community in which he lives, 
and is universally esteemed by all classes of its people as one of their 
most worthy and estimable citizens from every point of view, and he 
is altogether deserving of the rank he holds in the public mind. 



DR. WILLIAM B. SCOTT 

For about twenty three years busily engaged in an active and ex- 
tensive practice as a physician and surgeon, and the representative of 
the third generation of his family as residents of Linn county. Dr. Wil- 
liam B. Scott of Bucklin has a special interest in this part of the state, 



644 HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 

and by his skill and industry in his profession and his high character 
as a man and usefulness in many ways as a citizen, has endeared himself 
to the people who have had the benefit of his services, and still have 
it, and won their esteem to a very unusual degree. 

The doctor is a native of Bucklin township, in which almost the 
whole of his life to this time has been passed, having been born at the 
old town of Wyandotte on January 8, 1865, the place of his birth before 
the founding of Bucklin being the only town or semblance of a town 
within the present limits of the township. It was only a hamlet, and has 
no present existence save in the memory of the early residents of this 
section, its site having long been a well improved farm. It is a scene of 
prosperity and productiveness now, but ''all its charms" as a town 
have fled as completely as those of "Sweet Auburn, loveliest village of 
the plain," which has been so beautifully emblamed in Goldsmith's un- 
dying song. 

Dr. Scott is a son of Charles and Susan (Wyatt) Scott, the former 
a native of Virginia and the latter of Missouri. The father came to this 
state and county with his parents, Bazwell and Clarinda (Carter) Scott, 
from Virginia in 1855. The family located at Wyandott, where Bazwell 
Scott became widely known and prominent in the affairs of the township 
of Yellow Creek, of which Bucklin township was then a part. He en- 
gaged in mercantile business there and also cultivated a farm. He was 
a man of considerable force of character, but held on to customs with 
great tenacity, once making a trip to his old home in what is now West 
Virginia on horseback because he was afraid to travel on a railroad. He 
and his wife were the parents of two sons and eight daughters who grew 
to maturity. The parents died at Wyandotte and their remains were 
buried there. 

Their son Charles, the doctor's father, also became a farmer near 
Wyandott, and later kept a general store at Bucklin. He served the 
community for some years as street commissioner, and died in Bucklin 
on March 18, 1911. His widow and their four living sons are residents 
of this county. One other son was born in the family, but he died a 
number of years ago. The mother is now well advanced in years but 
still hale and energetic, exhibiting yet much of the spirit of the pioneers, 
and highly esteemed as one of the most sterling of them in this part of 
the country. 

Dr. Scott grew to manhood in Linn county and obtained the founda- 
tion of his academic education in its public schools. He also attended 
the Kirksville State Normal School, and after leaving it taught school 



HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTl 645 

two years. In 1886 he began studying medicine in the office of his uncle, 
Dr. J. C. Scott, at St. Catharine, and the next year entered the Missouri 
Medical College in St. Louis as a student. He was graduated from that 
institution with the degree of M. D. in 1889 and at once begin practicing 
his profession at Bucklin, where he remained continuously until 1901. 
In that year he went to Oklahoma and for a period of about 10 months 
held a claim on a tract of government land, but while there also engaged 
in practice. 

In 1902 he returned to Bucklin, and there he has made his home 
ever since. From 1892 to 1901 he was in the drug trade in Bucklin, 
but since his return he has devoted himself exclusively to his practice, 
which has been sufficient in its demands to take all his time and atten- 
tion. He is still an industrious and reflective student of his profession, 
keeping in touch with its best literature and availing himself of all 
means of Ms command to improve his knowledge of it in theory 
and practice. He is an active and attentive member of the American 
Medical Association and the State, County and Grand Eiver Medical 
societies, securing what information he can from each and contributing 
to the interest and value of their proceedings in response to every de- 
mand they make upon him. 

In 1910 the doctor was appointed surgeon for the railroads at 
Bucklin, and has since held that important and highly useful position 
and performed its duties with satisfaction to the railroad companies 
and the general public, and he has also continued his general practice 
with great industry and zealous attention to its needs. He does not, 
however, neglect the duties of citizenship and takes part in political 
affairs as a firm and faithful adherent of the Democratic party. As 
such he was elected county coroner in 1892 and held the office until 
1894. During his tenure of it he conducted the inquest on the Meeks 
family and secured the first evidence against the Taylor boys. For de- 
tails of this case consult the general history of Linn county in another 
part of this volume. He was also appointed local register of the state 
board of health in 1910, and is still holding that very needful and ser- 
viceable position. 

Dr. Scott was married on April 10, 1894, to Miss Laura Bell, who 
is also a native of this county. They have three children, their daugh- 
ters May and Cora Bell and their son William B., Jr. In the fraternal 
life of the community the doctor has many connections, being a mem- 
ber of the Masonic Order, the Order of the Eastern Star, the Independ- 
ent Order of Odd Fellows, the Modern Woodmen of America and the 



646 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

Eoyal Neighbors of America. He takes an earnest interest and an ac- 
tive part in the work of each of these fraternities. 



COL. THADDEUS J. STAUBER 

(Deceased) 

A minister of the gospel for many years until his voice failed him, 
and even after that disaster giving considerable time and attention to 
evangelical work in the locality of his home; a gallant and intrepid 
Union soldier during the Civil War, in which he rose to the rank of 
lieutenant-colonel by the value and fidelity of his services ; a farmer in 
St. Charles county of this state for a time; a vigorous and prolific 
editor of an influential paper, and then, until the end of his life one of 
the leading farmers of Yellow Creek township in this county, the late 
Col. Thaddeus Stauber was a very useful man in many localities and in 
a variety of serviceable occupations, in all of which he was true to every 
duty. 

Colonel Stauber was born in Mifflin county, Pennsylvania, on April 
25, 1825, and was a son of Benjamin and Elizabeth (McCord) Stauber, 
also natives of that state. The father was a manufacturing hatter and 
carried on an enterprise in that line at Lewistown, Pennsylvania, for 
many years. He moved to Missouri in 1866 and located in this county 
on a farm one mile and a half north of St. Catharine, where he lived 
about fifteen years. At the end of that period he changed his residence 
to Topeka, Kansas, and there he died. His wife died in Scotland coun- 
ty, this state. They had four sons and four daughters who grew to 
maturity, but none of them resides in Linn county at this time (1912). 

Thaddeus J. Stauber was reared in his native county and prepared 
himself for the ministry of the Methodist Episcopal church. For some 
years he was attached to the Baltimore conference of that denomina- 
tion and filled appointments under its assignment. In 1853 he went to 
the Berryville, Virginia, circuit, where he remained engaged in the ac- 
tive work of the ministry for one year, then lost his voice and was com- 
pelled to retire from the service of the church for a time. In 1858 he 
came to Missouri and took up his residence on a farm near Flint Hill in 
St. Charles county, which he cultivated two years, and at the same time 
rendered the community surrounding him good service as a local 
preacher. 

In 1859 he took charge of the Troy Citizen in Troy, the county 



HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 647 

seat of the adjoining county of Lincoln, and this newspaper he edited 
and published until the beginning of the Civil War. He was ardently 
attached to the Union and when armed hostilities threatened its dis- 
memberment he felt it his duty to go to its defense. Accordingly, in the 
fall of 1861 he enlisted under Col. John B. Henderson and was stationed 
in Pike county. A short time afterward he was appointed provost 
marshal of Calloway county. 

While performing the duties of this office he was taken prisoner 
by a company of bushwhackers, but made his escape from them and then 
determined to raise a regiment of his own. With this end in view he 
came to Linn county and recruited the Forty-sixth Missouri Volunteer 
Infantry, of which he was made lieutenant-colonel, and which he served 
in that position to the close of the war, when he was mustered out of the 
service with the rank that had been conferred upon him when he raised 
the regiment. 

In 1865, after his discharge from the army, he returned to this 
county and bought 140 acres of land in Yellow Creek township, to which 
he moved his family the next year. He resided on this farm until his 
death on September 4, 1893, and raised it to a high state of improvement 
and productiveness, making it one of the best and most attractive farms 
of its size in the township of its location. For he farmed as he preached 
and fought with all his faculties alert and studious of his work and all 
his powers energetically employed in performing it. 

Col. Stauber was married on October 24, 1854, to Miss Margaret 
Burwell, a native of Virginia. They had six children, four of whom are 
living: Ealph 0., who is a lawyer in St. Joseph, Missouri; Edward B., 
who is a resident of the state of Idaho ; Nannie B., who is now the wife 
of C. Maddox of this county ; and Thomas M., who is engaged in farm- 
ing in Linn county. The mother is still living and has her home at the 
old homestead. 

Colonel Stauber was a firm and faithful Republican in his political 
faith and attachment, and an ardent and efficient worker for the good 
of his party. He was chosen as its candidate to represent Linn county 
in the state legislature in 1869, and made an excellent record for good 
service in that body. He always had the enduring welfare of Linn 
county and his state at heart, and suffered nothing to divert him from 
striving to promote that, without regard to personal or other consider- 
ations. He was a Freemason in fraternal relations and continued in 
the work of his church as a local preacher until a few years before his 
death. Throughout Linn county he was well and favorably known and 



648 HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 

everybody had the highest respect for him and warm admiration of 
his abilities and his worth and usefulness as a man and citizen. 



GEORGE A. HALEY 

Although not a native of Linn county or the state of Missouri, or 
even of the United States, George A. Haley, one of the leading farmers 
of Marceline township, has been a resident of the county for over forty- 
one years, and all of the time on the farm on which he now lives. He 
is one of the few and fast-fading old settlers of this locality who are 
left to tell the story of the early days, when he, with others, laid the 
foundations of the present civilization and industrial and mercantile 
development, as he came to this region soon after Marceline was laid 
out and started on its career of startling progress and rapid growth. 

Mr. Haley was born in Ontario county, province of Ontario, Can- 
ada, on October 3, 1843. He is a brother of Dr. Robert Haley of Brook- 
field, in a sketch of whose life, to be found elsewhere in this volume, 
the family history is given. In his native country the young Canadian 
reached his maturity and obtained his education, finishing at first rate 
schools in Toronto, and after leaving school he farmed in Ontario until 
1870. In that year he moved to this state and located on a tract of 190 
acres of wild land in what is now Marceline township, which he bought. 

His subsequent years in the county have been devoted to improving 
this land, bringing it to an advanced state of productiveness, equipping 
it with everything required for its best cultivation and enriching it with 
a comfortable dwelling, commodious barns and all the other structures 
needed for the proper use and development of its resources. He has ap- 
plied his energies to these demands in all their phases and features, and 
has thereby made his farm one of the most valuable and desirable in the 
township of its location, and one that is a fair representative of the best 
and most valuable in the county. 

Mr. Haley was married on April 14, 1867, to Miss Hannah Mc- 
Kenzie, like himself, a native of Canada, where the nuptials were sol- 
emnized. They have had two children, their daughter Margaret, who 
is living at home with her parents, and their son Arthur M., who has 
died. He grew to manhood, and at the time of his death was the hus- 
band of an estimable lady, whose maiden name was Alice Swan. The 
mother of these children died in the year 1906. 

In politics Mr. Haley is a loyal and devoted member of the Demo- 
cratic party, adhering to it under the conviction that its principles are 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 649 

the best for the country, and embody the best theory and the most 
satisfactory guarantee of good government. He has no political ambi- 
tion on his own part, and no desire whatever for public office of any 
kind. His religious affiliation is with the Methodist Episcopal church, 
and in all the good work it undertakes for the benefit of his community 
he has an earnest interest and an active part. 

Mr. Haley has been earnest in his desire and sedulous in his efforts 
to aid in promoting the substantial and enduring welfare of his town- 
ship and county, and to this end has never stayed his hand when good 
work in their behalf was to be done. Whatever the project, if it in- 
volved advancement for the people, he has been at the front with good 
adice and ready assistance, and the other residents of the locality have 
witnessel his public spirit and have not withheld their commendation 
of it, and his generous devotion to the public weal in all respects. They 
look upon him as one of their most progressive, useful and representa- 
tive citizens, and they esteem him cordially in accordance with this 
estimate. 



LAWRENCE MILLER 

Not far beyond the full maturity of his manhood in years, but ripe 
in business training and experience, Lawrence Miller, one of the lead- 
ing merchants of Linn county, with a large and active general store 
in the town of St. Catharine, is a very useful, public spirited and pro- 
gressive citizen and one of the best known and most highly esteemed 
men in this part of the state of Missouri. While not a native of Linn 
county, he has lived in it from the time when he was four years old 
and been in business among its people continuously for nearly fifteen 
years. The strong regard felt for him is therefore based on a thorough 
knowledge of his worth, and the wide popularity he enjoys is due to his 
genial nature, his warm interest in the welfare of his township and 
county and his energy in striving to promote it. 

Mr. Miller was born in Miami county, Indiana, on July 1, 1877. 
His parents, George B. and Nancy E. (Petty) Miller, are also natives 
of that state, the father having been born in Miami county in 1841 and 
the mother in Wabash county in 1847. The father grew to manhood 
in his native state and began life as a farmer there. In 1862 he enlisted 
as a soldier for the Union in Company H, Eighty-seventh Indiana Vol- 
unteer Infantry, in which he served to the end of the war and was 
then discharged with the rank of corporal, to which he was promoted 



650 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

for the excellence of liis service and his strict fidelity to duty on all 
occasions, on the battlefield and off. 

His regiment was in the very thick of the fight during almost all 
of the four years' conflict and he saw a great deal of active service. He 
saw and partook of all the horrors of the deluge of death at Gettys- 
burg, was with Sherman in his historic march to the sea, and partici- 
pated in many other renowned engagements of the momentous sec- 
tional strife which so nearly rent our stricken land asunder and cost 
so much in blood and treasure, but which settled forever some of the 
most troublesome problems of statecraft our country has ever known. 

In 1867 he came to this county and engaged in farming until 1873. 
In that year he returned to Indiana, where he remained until 1881 and 
followed the same pursuit. In the year last mentioned he again became 
a resident of Linn county, and came to stay, as he bought a farm in 
Locust Creek township, which he lived on and farmed until 1897. In 
that year, in association with his son Lawrence, he started the mercan- 
tile enterprise at St. Catharine which the latter is now .conducting on 
his own account, having bought the business from his father in 1901. 

The father was postmaster of St. Catharine seven years, and 
always, from the time of his second arrival in the county, has been a 
man of prominence and influence in its affairs, political and material. 
He is a -member of the Masonic order, and he and his wife belong to 
the Methodist Episcopal church. They are now living retired in 
Brookfield, with three sons and four daughters alive devoted to their 
welfare and zealous in doing them reverence and augmenting their 
happiness. The grandfather, Miller, was born and reared in Kentucky 
and moved from that state to Indiana at an early date, and there he 
died. 

Lawrence Miller grew from the age of four years to manhood in 
Linn county and was educated in its public schools. He assisted his 
father on the home farm until 1897, when together they inaugurated 
the general merchandising enterprise at St. Catharine which is still 
in the family name. The father and son conducted the business 
together for six years. The son then bought the father's interest in 
the business, and since that time he has carried it on alone, as has 
been stated. 

The progress of the firm in trade and the expansion of its business 
were such that in 1908 it was obliged to secure more commodious and 
convenient quarters, and in that year the present store building, which 
is 30 by 90 feet in dimensions, was erected to meet the requirements. 
Since then the growth in business has steadily continued, and it now 



HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 651 

amounts to over $30,000 a year. The territory covered by the trade has 
greatly enlarged, the reputation of the store in the mercantile world 
has risen to a high point, its popularity has extended widely and been 
considerably intensified, and the number of its patrons has increased 
by leaps and bounds from year to year. For it is conducted on an 
elevated plane of integrity, progressiveness and consideration for the 
wants of the purchasing public in every respect. 

Mr. Miller was married on December 27, 1899, to Miss Cora E. 
Glasgow, a native of this county and the daughter of Thomas and 
Emma (Anderson) Glasgow, early settlers in the county, a sketch of 
whom will be found elsewhere in this volume. Mr. and Mrs. Miller 
have two children, their sons Thomas Ole and Lawrence E., who are 
now attending school. Politically the head of the house is a Democrat, 
firm in his convictions and true and loyal to his party. He has served 
six years as township trustee, and so widely cared for the interests 
of the township and its residents that his work in the office is held in 
the highest appreciation. His only affiliation in the fraternal life of 
the community is with the Modern Woodmen of America and the 
Yoemen. His rank as a merchant is high; his usefulness as a citizen 
is pronounced, and his life as a man is above reproach. The people of 
the whole county esteem him in accordance with this estimate, and 
know that he is worthy of it. 



DR. JOHN C. SCOTT 

(Deceased) 

In the death of the late Dr. John C. Scott, who departed this life 
on March 14, 1905, at the age of sixty-five years, Linn county lost one 
of its leading physicians and most active and useful citizens. He had 
been a resident of the county for fifty-one years, and had practiced his 
profession among its residents for thirty-seven. He also owned a fine 
farm of 148 acres near the town of St. Catharine, and in that town he 
had a fine residence on one of the principal streets. In addition to his 
lucrative practice and profitable farming operations he was largely 
engaged in raising live stock for the general markets. 

Dr. Scott was born on June 14, 1840, in Tazewell county, Virginia, 
and was a son of Bazwell and Marinda (Carter) Scott. He obtained 
his academic education at Mount Pleasant College, which is located at 
Huntsville in Randolph county, this state, and became a resident of 
Linn county in 1854. For a number of years after locating in this 



653 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

county lie was engaged in farming. When he determined to study- 
medicine and make the practice of that science his chief work for the 
rest of his life, he entered Keokuk (Iowa) University, and from that 
institution he was graduated with the degree of M. D. in 1868. He at 
once began the practice of his profession in this county, and here he 
continued it until his death. 

Dr. Scott rose to prominence and influence in his work in the 
county, serving as the secretary of the Linn County Medical Society for 
a time and as county coroner for some years, being first elected to this 
office in 1880. He pursued a post graduate course in special training 
at Rush Medical College in Chicago and was always a diligent student 
of the best literature of his profession and a keen reasoner on its man- 
ifestations in his practicar work, and in addition was ever willing to 
communicate the information he possessed to his professional brethren, 
although modest and unassuming in doing so. They esteemed him 
highly, as did the people of the whole county, both as a physician and 
as a man and citizen. 

The doctor was a Freemason in fraternal life and a Democrat in 
politics. But while he was loyal to his party and at all times desirous 
of its success, he never sought any of its honors or emoluments for 
himself. His religious connection was with the Methodist Episcopal 
Church South, of which he was a devout and consistent member for 
many years. He also took a cordial and very helpful interest in the 
lodge in the Masonic order of which he was so long a valued member. 

Dr. Scott was married on July 27, 1875, to Miss Eliza A. Williams, 
who was born in Chariton county, this state, on November 27, 1852. 
She is a daughter of Nathaniel L. and Clarinda (Vance) Williams, the 
former a native of Virginia and the latter of Missouri of German ances- 
try. Mrs. Scott's grandfather, William Williams, came to Old Char- 
iton in Chariton county among the first settlers in that locality. He 
died there in 1861. Dr. and Mrs. Scott were the parents of four chil- 
dren, all of whom are living: Florence A,, who is now the wife of E. E. 
Rouse, of Kansas City, Missouri; Minnie M., who is now the wife of 
Mark Wigle and lives at Cameron in Clinton county, this state; and 
Everett E. and Grace M., who are still residing at home with their 
mother. She is one of the most esteemed matrons in the community of 
her home, in which she has always taken a lively and serviceable inter- 
est in connection with every department of its intellectual, moral, mate- 
rial and social life, giving a fine example of elevated womanhood and 
usefulness to the people living around her. 




EEV. PETER J. CULL EN 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 653 

REV. PETER J. CULLEN 

Genial, whole-souled and companionable, with a hearty welcome 
and an open hand for all comers, whether of his faith or not ; yet with a 
stern and unrelenting sense of duty in his sacred office and all that per- 
tains to it; always as ready to reprove error as he is to commend 
upright living, and as forceful in one as he is gracious and cordial in 
the other; with a high order of business capacity also, and great in- 
dustry in the use of it. Rev. Peter J. Cullen, pastor of the Catholic church 
in Marceline enjoys great and wide-spread popularity and is richly 
deserving of it. His place in the regard of the whole people of Linn 
county is an elevated one, and it is firmly established, for he is one of 
the best citizens of this section of the country and has shown that he is 
genuine in every way. 

Father Cullen was born in County Cavan, Ireland, on January 9, 
1856. He is a son of James and Ellen (Cullen) Cullen, also natives of 
County Cavan in the Emerald Isle, where the father was a farmer, 
carpenter and loom maker. They were the parents of four sons and five 
daughters, four of whom, two of the sons and two of the daughters, 
became residents of the United States. 

Rev. Peter J. Cullen was reared in his native land and obtained his 
education there, both academic and clerical. He attended the National 
school of the country, then pursued a four year's course in Latin at St. 
Bernard's College, from which he was graduated with the honors of his 
class. After leaving this institution he located in Dublin, and during 
the next five years was a student at All Hallows College near that city, 
an institution devoted to foreign mission work, and to training students 
for the priesthood in that department of the church's undertakings. He 
was graduated from this college in 1879, and was ordained as a priest in 
June of that year. In the September following he came to this country 
and proceeded direct to St. Joseph, Missouri. 

After passing a year in the cathedral in St. Joseph, and one at St. 
Patrick's church in that city, he worked six months in the counties to 
the north. At the end of that period he was assigned to the church at 
Weston, where he remained two years. From AVeston he was trans- 
ferred to Liberty in Clay county, and there he was busily employed in 
his beneficent duties of looking after the spiritual welfare of his parish 
and building up its material interests for fourteen years. During this 
period he also built the church edifice at Excelsior Springs. 

In November, 1897, Father Cullen was sent to Marceline as the 
successor of Rev. Thomas J. Burke, and he has been located in that city 



654 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

ever since. He also has charge of the church at Bucklin. During his 
pastorate at Marceline Father Cullen has vastly improved the church 
property at a cost of over $3,000, the improvements including new 
walks in the grounds and around them, electric lights and other modern 
requirements. Soon after his arrival he also bought land and laid it 
out for a cemetery, the first one in the city. Since coming to this city 
he has administered the rite of baptism to 267 persons and added to the 
church membership considerably. There are now over eighty families 
belonging to the church as regular communicants, and the progress is 
still going on at a healthy and gratifying rate, in both Marceline and 
Bucklin. 

These are but logical results of Father Cullen 's great industry and 
influence. He is an indefatigable worker, he understands human nature, 
and he is devoted to the interests he has in charge. He therefore suc- 
ceeds in what he undertakes, because he omits no effort necessary to 
success, and laughs at obstacles to his purposes, often turning them to 
his service by the force of his determined and unyielding will. He is 
also an accomplished and impressive speaker, with a thorough mastery 
of the teachings of the church and great power and eloquence in pre- 
senting and advocating them. Out of the sacred desk he is a lover of 
good-fellowship in the best sense of the term, and under all circum- 
stances he is a high-minded, progressive and deeply patriotic American 
citizen. These qualities of mind and heart have given him a strong hold 
on the confidence and regard of the people, without regard to creed or 
church connection, and been of great service to him in many ways. His 
church has nowhere a man better adapted to the situation in which it 
has placed him, and Linn county has no better citizen, as the united 
voice of its residents of all classes cheerfully and admiringly attests. 

Father Cullen 's pastoral duties have not been allowed to absorb 
the whole of his time and attention, although they are never neglected 
or slighed in the least degree, however great their exactions. But he 
has literary ability of a high order, and he has used it with great skill 
and decided benefit to thousands of people who have had the advantage 
of following his strong and fluent pen. He has written two forcible books 
of an argumentative character on subjects pertinent to his regular 
work, and they are considered by excellent judges very convincing in 
their logic, pleasing in their style and helpful in their effect. 

One of these books is entitled "A Guide to the True Faith," and 
the other "Socialism and the Christian Religion." Each has been 
highly commended by the press and scholastics in many parts of the 
country. Some of the press notices of the first are as follows : Public 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 655 

Opinion says of it : "It is written with a good spirit and a clear, direct 
and fascinating style." Church News declares: "It is full of valuable 
information for Catholics as well as non-Catholics." The Baltimore 
American calls it: "A plain, practical exposition of the doctrines of 
the Catholic Church intended for all those who are desirous to know its 
true belief." The Philadelphia Ledger says: "The author speaks 
from the standpoint of a faithful parish priest rather than as a casuist. 
His arguments are such as will reach the understanding of open-minded 
Americans desirous of maintaining loyalty to their country and their 
church. ' ' 

The work entitled "Socialism and the Christian Religion" has 
received many favorable notices, some of which follow. Father Lam- 
bert, in the New York Freeman Journal, says of it : "It is an excellent 
little book and most opportune. It is for the workingman, weary and 
dissatisfied, who is ready to give a willing ear to the delusive promises 
of Socialism that Father Cullen has written his book. And it is the 
book that the puzzled toiler needs." Ave Maria analyzes it in this 
language: "The author discusses, with admirable lucidity and force, 
the nature of Socialism ; its aims and purposes ; the banefulness of its 
teachings and doctrines on religion, morality and justice ; and the mani- 
fold evil consequences that would inevitably ensue from its adoption." 

In addition to these serious works Father Cullen has written a 
number of poems, some lyrical, some didactic, some ardently patriotic in 
spirit and expression, and some in the form of hymns which breath the 
very essence of sacred devotion. Many of these poems have been 
published in local papers and many have reached the broader field of 
periodical embalmment. All have been received Avith favor and aug- 
mented the reputation of their author, whose pen is as graceful at the 
shrine of the Muses as it is vigorous in the domain of the logicians or 
that of the theologians. 



J. CAMPBELL LAWSON 

The pioneer grocer of Bucklin and engaged in his present line of 
trade in that town almost continuously for twenty-four years, J. Camp- 
bell Lawson has become thoroughly familiar with the needs of the com- 
munity in his department of mercantile enterprise. As he has been 
studious of his business in all its phases and features, studying the mar- 
kets as zealously as he does the wants of his patrons, he is able to meet 



656 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

the requirements of his trade in a way that gives great satisfaction to 
the public and is prefitable to him at the same time, 
county, Missouri, on July 1, 1861. His parents were Harvey and Ruth 
(Chaffin) Lawson, natives of North Central Tennessee, where the father 
was born in 1818 and the mother in 1820. The father was a clergyman 
of the Christian church and a blacksmith by trade. He and his wife 
came to Linn county in 1852 and located three miles north and west of 
Bucklin, where they lived three years, then moved to Macon county. 
In 1865 they returned to Bucklin, and here they passed the remainder 
of their days, the mother dying in 1904 and the father in 1905. They 
had four sons and four daughters, all of whom are living, J. Campbell 
and two of his sisters being residents of Linn county. 

In addition to being a minister of the gospel the father was also a 
farmer, and as he was eloquent and impressive in the pulpit, so was he 
also very practical, progressive and successful on his farm. For a year 
and a half during the Civil War he was chaplain of the Forty-second 
Missouri Volunteer Infantry, and in times of peace he took a cordial 
and helpful interest in the affairs of the state. He was one of the 
founders of the State Normal School at Kirksville, and was widely 
known throughout Missouri because of his devotion to the general 
welfare of the people, especially in connection with the cause of public 
education and the spread of the Christian religion, in both of which he 
took a very active part. 

J. Campbell Lawson was about four years old when his parents 
brought him to Bucklin, and he has lived in that town ever since except 
for about three years. He obtained his education in the district schools 
of the town, and when he completed their course of instruction engaged 
in railroad construction work as a bridge carpenter on the Chicago, 
Burlington & Quincy road, for which he worked some seven years. 
From early life, however, he had a desire for mercantile pursuits, and 
at the end of the period mentioned he determined to gratify that desire. 

In 1888 he opened a grocery store at Bucklin, which he conducted 
for a number of years. He was then absent from this part of the county 
for three years, but at the end of that period returned to Bucklin, 
where he has been occupied in his former business ever since. He has 
been very attentive to his business and it has prospered. But he has 
not allowed it to absorb all his time and attention. Other business 
interests in the community have also had the benefit of his intelligence, 
enterprise and breadth of view in their management, as he has been for 
some vears a director of the Citizens Bank and of the Bucklin Coal 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 657 

Company, serving the latter also as treasurer for some time and holding 
that office at present. 

Mr. Lawson was married on April 16, 1890, to Miss Belle Howe, a 
daughter of James Howe, a pioneer of Linn county and county judge 
for a considerable time. Mr. and Mrs. Lawson have two children, their 
son Ralph and their daughter Frances. The father is connected with 
the Order of Odd Fellows, the Knights of Pythias and the Woodmen of 
the World in fraternal relations, stands well socially, has a high rank 
among business men and is regarded wherever he is known as one of 
the most enterprising and public-spirited citizens of Bucklin township 
and Linn county. 



MICHAEL A. COFFMAN 

A well-fixed farmer on the fertile and fruitful land of Linn county, 
who has his business well in hand and prosecutes it with vigor and 
intelligence is in a comfortable condition in a worldly way, and almost 
beyond the reach of adversity. Moreover, his occupation is one that 
keeps him in close touch with Nature, the source and inspiration of all 
life, makes him independent of the rise and fall of political parties, the 
uncertainties and hazards of commercial life, and all the various and 
disturbing contentions among men. It makes and keeps him a veritable 
king in his own dominion, but without any of the fuss and artificial 
restraints, the trappings and gauds, the atmosphere of hypocrisy and 
pretense, and the other disagreeable attendants of royalty in the realms 
of state craft and government, where ambition is the ruling passion 
and power the prize sought. 

Michael A. Coffman, one of the best known and most progressive 
farmers in the neighborhood of Marceline, is a man of this type and 
enjoys his membership in the class. He is a wide-awake and enter- 
prising farmer, up to date in his methods, winning good returns for his 
labor, enjoying the confidence and esteem of his friends and acquaint- 
ances, and relying on his own resources for his advancement in life. He 
was born on March 2, 1861, in what is now West Virginia, but was then 
a part of the Old Dominion. His parents, Jacob and Elizabeth (Harr) 
Coffman, were also natives of that state, born and reared in Taylor 
county. 

The father was a blacksmith and farmer. He moved his family to 
Missouri in 1868 and located on a tract of unbroken prairie in Knox 
county. This he lived on and improved until 1891. He is now a resi- 
dent of Clark county, where he and his wife dwell together in a pleas- 



658 HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 

ant home. They have had eleven children, five sons and six daughters. 
Four of the sons and three of the daughters are living, two in Linn 
county, Michael and his brother James M., the latter residing at 
Marceline. 

Mr. Coffman was seven years old when his parents moved from 
West Virginia to Missouri, and from then until he was twenty he 
remained at home. He attended the district school in the neighbor- 
hood of the home farm, aided in breaking up its stubborn glebe and 
reducing it to systematic productiveness and bore his part in all its 
laborious requirements. At the age of twenty he went to Wisconsin 
to begin the battle of life on his own account, but after an experience of 
two years in that state he returned to his Missouri home, where he 
passed one year more, or a part of one. 

In 1883 he went to Virginia City, Montana, and in the vicinity of 
that then busy mining camp became possessed of and operated a cattle 
and horse ranch. The country was wild; Indians and beasts of prey 
were still abundant in it; transportation facilities were meager; the 
ordinary comforts of life were often difficult to get, and the experience 
was one of hardship and hazard. But he remained ten years and in 
spite of all the unfavorable conditions was successful in his undertaking. 

But he grew tired of the wild existence, and in 1893 returned to 
this state and bought a farm in Linn county. On this he has since 
lived and labored with sedulous and well-applied industry, keeping 
X^ace with the progress in his calling and making himself one of the 
best farmers in his township and his farm one of its most valuable and 
attractive rural homes. His efforts are directed by intelligence secured 
in a close and careful study of his work, his land as to its requirements 
and possibilities, and the varying state of the markets with reference 
to products and desires. He is therefore always at the door of oppor- 
tunity with his output, and it is always saleable and has good value, 
while every acre of his land is made to yield its full tribute to his 
industry. 

Mr. Coffman was married on January 12, 1884, to Miss Lotie 
Buford, a daughter of James and Mattie (Grlasscock) Buford, early 
settlers in Knox county, this state. Two children have been born of 
the union, but only one of them, a son named Earl M. Coffman, is living. 
The father is a Democrat in politics, but he has never filled or sought 
a political office of any kind, and is not an active partisan beyond per- 
forming faithfully the duties of good citizenship as a voter. Frater- 
nally he belongs to the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, and hi^ 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 659 

wife is a member of the Baptist clmrcli, which he also attends. He is 
well known in the county and is everywhere highly esteemed. 



ALONZO WITHERS 

Having devoted the greater part of his life and energy to farming 
on an extensive scale, and also having given time and attention to 
profitable merchandising during the last twenty-three years, in connec- 
tion with his farming operations, Alonzo Withers, of Marceline, has 
been a useful factor in the growth and development of this part of the 
state, a considerable contributor to its industrial and mercantile 
activity and influence, and a force of potency in its civic and social life. 

While not a native of Linn county, Mr. Withers has passed a large 
part of his life within its borders and is thoroughly imbued with the 
spirit of its people. He had nothing to learn of this spirit when he 
came among them, for he was never remote from them and had no 
predilections in favor of other sections of the country to overcome. He 
was bom, reared and educated in the adjoining county of Chariton, 
where his life began on May 16, 1855, and since its founding in 1888 
he has lived at Marceline. 

Mr. Withers is the son of Arthur and Purlina (Hays) Withers, 
natives of Madison county, Kentucky. The father was a millwright 
and cabinet maker, and also followed farming. He came to Missouri 
about the year 1830 and located in Chariton county twenty miles north 
of Brunswick. There he took up government land, which he lived on, 
improved and farmed until his death in 1879. The mother died in 
1880. They were the parents of six sons and six daughters, only five 
of whom are living, Alonzo and four of his sisters. The father took 
an active interest in public affairs, and for many years served his town- 
ship as a justice of the peace, and also filled other township offices. ^ 

Alonzo Withers still owns the old family homestead in Chariton 
county on which he was reared and from which he was sent to the 
neighboring district school. He taught school for ten years and at the 
same time was engaged in farming. For a short time he also kept a 
store at Westville. In 1888, when the foundation of Marceline was laid, 
and the promise of its rapid growth and coming importance as a mer- 
cantile center engaged general attention in this part of the state, he 
located there and opened a drug store with general merchandise as a 
part of his stock in trade. That city has been his home and the seat of 



660 HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 

his operations ever since, but he has continued to superintend the 
work on his farms, which comprise 320 acres. 

Mr. Withers was married on August 17, 1879, to Miss Nanny D. 
Akers, a daughter of Simon P. and Catherine E. Akers, who came to 
Missouri from Virginia about 1840, and were among the early arrivals 
in this part of the state. Five children have been born in the Withers 
household: James A., Emma H., and Simon P., who have died, and 
Alonzo T. and Catherine, who are still at home with their parents. 

While Mr. Withers feels a deep and patriotic interest in public 
affairs, and gives them a good citizen's attention, he has no ambition 
for prominence in the management of them and has never sought or 
desired a public office of any kind. He believes in and votes with the 
Democratic party, but is not an active partisan in the sense of being a 
campaign worker. He does not hide his hand in this respect, but 
neither does he flourish it in any ostentatious way. His impulse and 
incitement in the matter is the good of his county, state and country, 
and in working for this in his quiet way he fulfills his duty as a citizen 
and meets his obligation to his fellow men. In all matters of public 
improvement he is deeply interested and manifests his interest in active 
support of all worthy undertakings which have the public welfare 
in view. 



HON. EMMETT B. FIELDS 

Although born on a farm in Sullivan county, this state, former 
Senator Emmett B. Fields, now a resident of Browning, has passed 
almost the whole of his life to the present time (1912) in Linn county, 
and for many years has been prominent in its civil, social, professional 
and political activities. He has been called by the people to several 
offices of responsibility and high trust, and has been commended by all 
classes for the excellence of his record in each. He finally received 
from Linn county the highest political honor it alone could bestow by 
his election to the state senate, and to emphasize their approval of his 
course in that body, the people of the county re-elected him to it twice, 
the full extent of his tenure of the office of senator being three terms, 
or twelve years. 

The senator's life began on January 24, 1863, and he is a son of 
Patterson and Sarah (Jennings) Fields, the former a native of Russell 
county, Virginia, and the latter of Shelby county, Kentucky. The father 
was brought to Missouri in 1842, when he was but one year old. His 
parents first lived in Sullivan county for a few years, then moved to 



HISTORY OF LI^^N COUNTY G^Jl 

Linn county, where their son grew to manhood on a farm near the town 
of Purdin. He was a farmer and died on his Linn county farm in 1872. 
The mother died in 1869. 

They had three children who grew to maturity, and all of them 
are now living in this county. They are the senator, his brother, John 
W. Fields, an extensive live stock dealer, and their sister, Mrs. R. L. 
Bowyer. After their mother died the father married a second wife, 
being united with Miss Nancy Baskett, who is still living. Two daugh- 
ters were born of this marriage, only one of whom is living, Mrs. Sarah 
Neely, of Browning. The grandfather, Capt. Joseph B. Fields, was 
born in Virginia, came to Missouri to live in 1842, and died in Linn 
county in 1870. While living in Virginia he was a lieutenant-colonel in 
the militia of that state. His regular occupation was teaching school, 
and he served as county superintendent of schools in this county from 
1853 to 1863. 

He took an active part in the public affairs of the county, and on 
one occasion was the Democratic candidate for the state legislature 
and was defeated in the election by a majority of one vote. He was 
married twice and had a large family by his first wife. Of their off- 
spring, two sons and one daughter are living: Thomas J. and Colin 
C. Fields, and Mrs. Elizabeth Baskett. The grandfather was born in 
1805. He was a lifelong Democrat, beginning his service to his party 
by casting his first presidential vote for Andrew Jackson in 1828. 

Emmett B. Fields was reared from an early age to manhood in 
Linn county and obtained his academic education in its schools. He 
began the struggle for advancement among men as a farmer and school 
teacher, and adhered to those occupations for a number of years. In 
1886 he began the study of law and was admitted to the bar in 1887, 
in the month of June. He soon afterward started his professional 
career at Browning, and here he has been living and actively engaged 
in practice ever since. He assisted the state in the prosecution of the 
famous Taylor murder case, and also in other celebrated cases, and 
has been counsel for the defendant in a number of noted trials which 
have attracted wide attention. 

In 1887 Mr. Fields was elected clerk and assessor for his town- 
ship for a term of four years. He has also served as a member of the 
city council of Browning, and was mayor of the city from 1891 to 1896. 
In 1888 he was the Democratic nominee for prosecuting attorney of 
the county, but failed in the election by a narrow margin of seven 
votes. From 1890 to 1898 he was a member of the countv central com- 



663 HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 

mittee of his party, and during the last two years of this period served 
as its chairman. 

Mr. Fields was first elected to the state senate in 1898, receiving 
the nomination of his party after a deadlock in the convention which 
lasted thirteen days, and in which 7,050 ballots were taken. He was 
re-elected in 1902 and again in 1906. During the whole of his service 
in the senate he was a member of the judiciary committee, and for 
eight years of the time its chairman. He was also on the revision com- 
mittee and the committees on normal schools and insurance. In 1905 
and 1907 he was president pro tempore of the senate, and during the 
interval between the expiration of the term of T. L. Ruby and the 
accession of John C. McKinley to the position of lieutenant-governor, 
Mr. Fields filled that office. 

Senator Fields was married first on February 20, 1887, to Miss 
Eunice M. Jessee, a native of Virginia. They had one child, their 
daughter Eunice D., who is now the wife of William Dickinson, of 
Browning, Missouri. Her mother died on July 16, 1889, and on Sep- 
tember 30, 1894, the father married again, being united on this occasion 
with Miss Gertrude Carter, who was born and reared in Linn county. 
They have five children, all of whom are living: Wayne B., Florence 
G., Hazel E., Allilie M. and Sherborn. 

In politics the senator is a firm and faithful Democrat. In frater- 
nal relations he is connected with the Order of Odd Fellows, the Modern 
Woodmen of America and the Royal Neighbors, and in religious faith 
he leans to the Southern Methodist Episcopal church, of which he is 
a regular attendant. He is widely and favorably known throughout 
the state as a capable lawyer, an enterprising and progressive man in 
civil and political affairs, an earnest advocate of every undertaking 
that makes for the betterment of his county and state, and an excellent 
citizen from every point of view. 



CHARLES E. RINEHART 

This gentleman is the youngest man who ever occupied the office 
of postmaster of Browning since it was established, but in the full year 
of his tenure of it, which is now ended (April, 1912), he has demon- 
strated his entire fitness for its duties and responsibilities and his 
ability and readiness in a performance of them that has given complete 
satisfaction to both the people of the community and the authorities 
of the federal government under whom he works. He exemplifies in an 



HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 663 

admirable manner the Jeffersonian requirements for good public service 
— honesty, capacity and fidelity — and his exhibition of them is highly 
appreciated by all the patrons of the office and the general public which 
have the benefit of them. 

Mr. Rinehart is a native of Linn county and was born on January 
29, 1877, on a farm a short distance southeast of the village of Brown- 
ing. He was reared on that farm and began work as a boy assisting 
his father in its cultivation. He started his education in the district 
school near the farm, but completed it at the Chillicothe State Normal 
school. He has therefore passed almost the whole of his life in this 
locality, and when its residents recommended him for appointment to 
his present office after the death of the late Benjamin F. Carter, its 
former incumbent, they knew full well what they were doing and the 
kind of official they were asking for. 

Mr. Rinehart is a son of Arthur and Mary E. (Armstrong) Rine- 
hart, natives of Green county, Pennsylvania, where the father was 
born in 1838 and the mother in 1843. The father was reared on a farm 
in that county, and farmed there himself until 1864, when he moved to 
Illinois, remaining in that state three years. In 1868 he came to Sulli- 
van county, Missouri, but soon afterward changed his residence to Linn 
county, locating on the farm on which he and the mother are still living, 
and which he has brought to a high state of development and fruitful- 
ness. Three children have been born in the family, Charles E. and his 
brothers, George L. and Frank N. They are all living, and George and 
Frank are residents of Canada. 

After leaving school Charles E. Rinehart farmed on his own ac- 
count for a few years, then turned his attention to dealing in and ship- 
ping live stock to the markets, continuing his operations in this line for 
ten years. For a time he was also engaged in business as a furniture 
dealer and undertaker at Browning, and for three years served as 
township assessor of Benton township. In 1910 he was the census 
enumerator for this portion of the county, and in February, 1911, was 
appointed postmaster of Browning, taking charge of the office in April 
of the same year. 

On November 9, 1898, Mr. Rinehart was united in marriage with 
Miss Ola Gooch, a daughter of James and Rebecca R. (Robinson) 
Gooch, residents and valued additions to the citizenship of this county. 
Three children have been born of the union, all of whom are living and 
still at home with their parents. They are : Marjorie F., Doris B. and 
C. Arthur. All the members of the family are ornaments to the social 
life of their community, and the parents are among its most esteemed 



664 HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 

residents, giving serviceable aid to every good work of its people and 
every undertaking for their welfare. 

In political relations Mr. Rinehart is a Republican of influence in 
the councils of his party, and has been a member of its county central 
committee for a number of years. Fraternally he is connected with 
the Modern Woodmen of America, and in this fraternity he takes a 
cordial interest and gives it loyal and helpful support. He is a broad- 
minded, public-spirited and progressive man of the best American type. 



HENRY C. BAILEY 

While it cannot be said that Henry C. Bailey was present at the 
birth of Browning and one of the sponsors of this new municipal off- 
spring of American enterprise and progressiveness, he was certainly 
one of the early arrivals at the place for permanent residence, and has 
been one of the most helpful and productive forces in promoting its 
growth and improvement. He arrived at what is now the town of 
Browning in the spring of 1881, just three years after the village was 
incorporated and eight years after the site for it was first surveyed. 
He at once opened a general store, and he has ever since been actively 
engaged in merchandising on an extensive scale with this town as his 
base of operations and the beneficiary of his large disbursements, 
voluminous transactions and stimulating and fruitful public spirit in 
behalf of the general well being. 

Mr. Bailey's life began in Green county, Pennsylvania, on Septem- 
ber 3, 1844, and he is the son of Eli and Elizabeth (Patten) Bailey, also 
natives of that state and county. The father was born in 1806, and 
even before the dawn of his manhood became a farmer on his own 
account in his native state. In 1848 he moved his family to Peoria 
county, Illinois, and there he continued farming until 1866, when he 
came to Missouri and bought a partially improved tract of land in 
Sullivan county not far from where Browning now stands. On this 
farm the father died in 1869, and the mother six years later, that is, 
in 1875. 

They were the parents of four sons and eight daughters. Two of 
the sons and four of the daughters are living, and three of the six 
reside in this state. Three of the sons served in the Union army 
during the Civil War, one in the Eleventh Illinois Cavalry and another 
in the Seventy-seventh Illinois Infantry and a third in the One Hun- 
dred and Eighth Illinois Infantry. One of the three gave up his 



HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 665 

life on the altar of patriotism in the fighting at Vicksburg, Mississippi. 
The other two came out of the service unharmed. 

The grandfather, Joab Bailey, was born in Connecticut, and later 
became a resident of Pennsylvania, where he farmed and served in 
the state militia, taking part in several prolonged contests with hostile 
Indians in that state. He died there at the age of eighty-three years. 
The family was founded in this country by Joel J. Bailey, who came 
to the colonies from England in 1680 and located in New England, where 
his descendants lived without change of residence for several genera- 
tions, and where some of them are yet to be found among the most 
highly respected and influential part of the population in that section 
of the country. 

Henry C. Bailey grew to manhood from the age of four years in 
Illinois, and was educated in a graded school in that state kept by 
J. W. Cook, an instructor of considerable renown in that locality. He 
farmed in Peoria county, Illinois, until the winter of 1864, then enlisted 
in Company G, One Hundred and Eighth Illinois Volunteer Infantry 
in which he served eleven months. He took part in the siege and 
capture of the Spanish fort in the harbor of Mobile bay in 1865, and 
also did police and garrison duty at various places. He was honorably 
discharged from the army in 1866. 

In the spring of that year he came to Missouri and took up his resi- 
dence in Sullivan county three miles north of Browning, where he lived 
fourteen years. In the spring of 1881 he moved to Browning and 
engaged in general merchandising in partnership with Rhemick C. 
Clark, under the firm name of Bailey & Clark. In 1887 he began buying 
and shipping poultry and furs, and in this line of merchandising he 
has been engaged ever since, having paid out during the course of his 
operations in it, a sum exceeding $400,000, or an average of more than 
$16,000 a year. 

Mr. Bailey is one of the founders and original stockholders of the 
Peoples Bank of Browning, and has been its vice president and a mem- 
ber of its board of directors from the time of its organization. He 
was married on February 11, 1869, to Miss Minnie Clark, a daughter 
of R. C. Clark, who became a resident of Sullivan county in 1865. Five 
children have been born of the union, and all of them are living. They 
are : Jessie M., the wife of S. C. Brossfield, whose home is in Oregon ; 
Edward C, who resides in Montana ; Bertha, the wife of Isaac McDer- 
med, who also lives in Oregon; Clara, who is the wife of Rev. T. S. 
Wlieeler, and a resident of Canada, and Raymond C, who is connected 
with the Bank of Browning. 



666 HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 

Mr. Bailey was postmaster of Browning four years under the 
administration of President Benjamin Harrison, and also served two 
years as township collector of Benton township. He is a pronounced 
Republican in his political faith and a firm and effective supporter 
of the principles and candidates of his party. In church connection 
he is a Baptist. Throughout northern Missouri he is well known and 
stands high in public estimation. In the marts or trade in all parts of 
the country, too, his name is a familiar one and his reputation is first 
class for integrity, intelligence and reliability as a merchant, while 
locally he is in the front rank in credit and influence as a citizen, a 
potential force for good, an exponent of the finest and best public 
spirit and an energetic promoter of the progress and improvement 
of his township and county in every way. 



FARMERS EXCHANGE BANK 

For fifteen years this enterprising, progressive and growing finan- 
cial institution has been carrying on a general banking business in 
Browning with great benefit to the community in and around the town 
and bringing in gratifying profits for its stockholders and all who have 
interests in it. It has been well managed, and while commendably wide- 
awake in getting and attending to business, it has also been prudently 
conservative in protecting its stockholders and depositors from all 
unnecessary risks. By its wise policy it has established itself firmly 
in the public confidence, and by judicious liberality to near the limit 
of safety it has won hosts of friends and a widespread and enduring 
popularity. 

The bank was founded in 1897 with a capital stock of $20,000, which 
has never been increased, although the volume of business transacted 
by the institution has greatly increased and keeps on increasing. The 
first officers were J. I. Harmon, president ; A. N. Thurlo, vice president ; 
Samuel L. Gibson, cashier. Mr. Harmon continued in the presidency 
for some time, and was succeeded when he retired by M. R. Jenkins, 
who^ gave way in turn to A. N. Thurlo. Then Mr. Harmon was made 
vice president, and J. M. Thurlo succeeded Mr. Gibson as cashier, with 
I. B. Christy as assistant. 

After a time J. A. Calhoun became assistant cashier, and in 1896 
he was elected cashier, and E. M. Wilson was made assistant. The next 
year R. M. Calhoun succeeded Mr. "Wilson as assistant cashier, and 
since that time there have been no changes in the official staff of the 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 667 

bank. The directors at this time (1912) are: L. G. Schrock, I. B. 
Christy, J. W. Sevier, J. M. Thurlo, H. C. Pearson, W. M. Shepherd, 
J. A. Calhoun, J. I. Harmon and A. N. Thurlo. These gentlemen give 
the affairs of the bank careful and intelligent attention, and as they 
are all men of high standing in the community, well known and widely 
esteemed for their integrity and success in all their own undertakings, 
their control of the bank furnishes a guarantee of its soundness and 
the wisdom and prudence of its management. It now has a surplus of 
$9,000, and this, like the business of the bank, is steadily increasing at 
a gratifying rate of speed. 

James A. Calhoun, the present cashier of the bank, who has served 
it in that capacity since 1896, is everywhere acknowledged to be one 
of the best and most capable banking and business men in Linn county. 
He was born in Pike county, Illinois, on January 4, 1854, and is a son 
of Hardy and Mary (Allen) Calhoun, the former a native of Tennessee 
and the latter of the state of New York. The father was a farmer, and 
about 1840 located in Pike county, Illinois, where he died in 1857. 
Afterward the mother contracted a second marriage, uniting herself 
with J. P. Hardy, and they came to Missouri with th"e intention of 
remaining. 

The turbulence and manifestations of bitter sectional feeling before 
the Civil War led them to return to Illinois until that deluge of disaster 
swept by, then, in 1866, they came again to this state and located in 
Linn county. Here they took up a tract of unbroken land and made a 
good farm of it, residing on it until 1884, when they moved to what is 
now North Dakota. In that state Mr. Hardy lost his life in a blizzard 
in 1892, and the mother died in 1897, universally respected wherever 
she was known. 

By her first marriage the mother had three children, her son, James 
A., and his two sisters. By her second marriage she had three sons 
and one daughter. Two of her seven children are living. The grand- 
father, Hansell Calhoun, was born and reared in Tennessee. About 
the year 1840 he moved to Illinois, where he died in 1862, on a farm 
he had owned and cultivated about eighteen years. He was the father 
of five children, three sons and two daughters, all of whom are now 
deceased. 

The interesting subject of this brief review was reared to the age 
of twelve by his grandfather, then, in 1866, came with his mother to 
this county. He assisted in clearing and improving the first farm 
occupied by the family in this locality, and in his youth drove cattle 
often over the site of the present town of Browning. His education 



668 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

was begun in the district schools of Benton township and completed at 
the Kirksville State Normal school. In 1875 he started an enterprise 
in general merchandising at Browning, which he carried on until 1884. 

In the year last mentioned he bought the old family homestead, 
and during the next eight years was busily occupied in raising live stock. 
In 1892 he became a traveling salesman, but this occupation was not 
at all to his taste, and he abandoned it at the end of the first six months. 
His next venture was in the hardware trade, in which he was engaged 
for something over ten years. In 1903 he assisted in organizing the 
bank of which he is now cashier, and with this institution he has been 
connected ever since. 

Mr, Calhoun was married in March, 1875, to Miss Helen M. Thorn- 
ton, a native of Wisconsin. They have five children living: Roy M., 
who is assistant cashier of the bank in whicj[i his father is cashier; 
John H., who is a hardware merchant in Browning, Missouri ; Pauline, 
who is married to J. R. Warner, and resides in Las Ammuas, Colorado; 
Lucile and Clara, twins. Lucile is the wife of B. A. Burton and lives 
in Iowa. Both parents are living. The father is a Republican in 
political relations, but he has never taken a very active part in political 
contests, and at no time in his life has he sought or desired a public 
office, although he has served as mayor and as a member of the city 
council of Browning. Fraternally he is connected with the Independent 
Order of Odd Fellows and deeply interested in the welfare and work- 
ings of his lodge in the fraternity. Throughout Linn county and the 
counties that adjoin it he is well and favorably known as a broad- 
minded, public spirited and progressive business man and citizen of 
high character and fine social culture, and is cordially esteemed in 
accordance with this estimate. 



DR. ROY W. WHALEY 

During the last eight years, with highly commendable industry, 
the utmost fidelity to his duties and a generous and genuine considera- 
tion for his patients which gives him great influence with them and 
aids materially in making his treatment of their ailments successful, 
Dr. Roy W. Whaley has been a practitioner of medicine and surgery in 
and around Browning. He has won a high reputation for the extent 
and accuracy of his knowledge of his profession and his skill and intel- 
ligence in the application of that knowledge to the needs of those to 
whom he ministers. He also has high standing in the public regard 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 669 

as a man and citizen, and is an ornament to the social life of the enter- 
prising and progressive community in which he lives and labors so 
effectively for the general weal. 

Dr. Whaley is a native of the adjoining county of Sullivan, where 
he was born in June, 1881, at the village of Scottsville. He is a son of 
Dr. David L. and Alpha (Tunnell) Whaley, the former was bora in 
Iowa and the later in Sullivan county, Missouri. The father was a 
graduate of the Missouri Medical College and the medical department 
of the University of Michigan. He practiced his profession at Scotts- 
ville, Sullivan county, from 1877 to 1892, then moved to Browning, 
where he continued practicing until his death in 1911. The mother is 
still living and resides at Browning. The grandfather, David Whaley, 
came to Missouri from the state of New York in about 1840 and located 
in Sullivan county, where he died at a good old age, after many years 
of progressive and profitable farming. 

Dr. Roy W. Whaley was reared and obtained his academic educa- 
tion in the neighborhood of Browning. In 1899 he entered the medical 
department of Washington University in St. Louis as a student, and 
from that institution he was graduated with the degree of M. D. in 
1904. He began practicing at Browning within the same year, and 
has been engaged in attention to a steadily increasing body of patients 
ever since. He is always prompt in his response to professional calls, 
studiously attentive to his patients, alert and analytical in his diag- 
nosis, and reflective and discriminating in his observations and skillful 
in the application of remedies. 

In order to keep himself in touch with the advance in his science 
he attends carefully to the instructions given and taken in the meet- 
ings of the county and state medical societies and the American 
Medical Association, to all of which he belongs. Fraternally he is con- 
nected with the Order of Odd Fellows, and he is also zealous in devotion 
to his lodge in this fraternity. In connection with the public affairs 
of the township and county of his home he is a decided and effective 
force for good, working always for progress and improvement, and the 
best interests of all the people by every means available to him. 

On May 22, 1907, the doctor was united in marriage with Miss 
Alpha L. Haj^maker, who was born and reared in Browning and is a 
daughter of Frederick M. and Maria E. (Kinman) Haymaker, well 
known and highly esteemed residents of that town, where they lived 
since 1865. Although not an active partisan and not ambitious of 
political preferment, the doctor is a firm believer in the principles of 
the Democrat party, and gives it his support in national affairs. 



670 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

Locally he looks first to the good of the community and votes for that 
according to his view of the requirments. He is comparatively young 
yet in years and in his profession, and the future is full of hope for him. 



JOHN I. PURDIN 



Farmer, lumberman and dealer in farm implements in this state, 
afterward again a farmer and lumber merchant and also a live stock 
dealer in South Dakota, then the owner of a bank in that state and now 
president of the Stockgrowers Bank of Purdin, a town founded by and 
named in honor of his grandfather, John I. Purdin, has had a varied 
career in respect to both location and employment, and in all his resi- 
dences and occupations has demonstrated his worth and ability as a 
man and his usefulness as a citizen. 

Mr. Purdin is a native of Linn county, Missouri, where his life 
began on May 2, 1852, Benton township having been the place of his 
birth. He is a son of Alexander and Susan (Southerland) Purdin, the 
former born in Indiana and the latter in Orange county, Virginia. Their 
names are prominent in the history of the county, and have always been 
held in high regard by all classes of its people. 

Their son, John I. Purdin, was reared and educated in this county 
and began life as a farmer in the township of his birth. After follow- 
ing the pursuit of the Old Patriarchs for ten years he moved to Brown- 
ing and became a lumber merchant and dealer in farm implements, 
remaining there and continuing in business as designated from 1884 to 
1887. In the year last mentioned he moved to Montrose, South Dakota, 
and there once more turned his attention to farming, but also kept up 
his operations as a lumberman, and in addition engaged extensively in 
buying and shipping live stock to the big markets of the country. 

In 1892, in connection with E. L. Ketcham,- his son-in-law, he pur- 
chased the Montrose Bank, which Mr. Ketcham is now in charge of. 
Mr. Purdin returned in 1904 to the city in this county which bears his 
honored family name, and there he has maintained his residence ever 
since. In 1910 he was made president of the Stockgrowers Bank, of 
which he is still the head and controlling spirit. The bank has a capi- 
tal stock of $30,000 and a surplus of $2,100, and is in a very prosperous 
condition. It is managed with skill and enterprise, and its liberality 
and public spirit have won it well-founded and widespread popularity. 
It is conducting all the approved departments of present-day banking, 




EDWAED C. WILLIAMS 



HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 671 

and is looked upon everywhere as one of the best and most progressive 
and enterprising banking institutions in the county. Mr. Purdin is a 
capable financier and he devotes the greater part of his time and his 
best energies to the affairs of the bank, and his course in this respect 
is one of the strong elements of its success. 

On September 12, 1872, Mr. Purdin was united in marriage with 
Miss Mary Hutchinson, a native of Pike county, Illinois. Her parents 
came to Linn county before the Civil War, being among the early set- 
tlers of this portion of the state, and becoming prominent in all phases 
of the political and social life of this region. Mr. and Mrs. Purdin have 
one child, their daughter Lunnie, who is now the wife of E. L. Ketcham, 
of Montrose, South Dakota, who is conducting the bank in that town, as 
has been noted. 

In politics Mr. Purdin trains with the Republican party, and is 
active in his support of it. While living in South Dakota he served 
two terms on the county court and two terms in the state legislature. 
Fraternally he is connected with the Ancient Order of United Work- 
men, and he and his wife are members of the Christian church. Charles 
B. Purdin was his grandfather and gave his name to the town he 
founded, in which his name is revered, as are those of Mr. Purdin and 
his wife throughout Linn county. 



EDWARD C. WILLIAMS 

Wliile there is nothing really old in this country since the dawn 
of civilization within its boundaries, except in a relative sense, every 
locality has a period in its history which seems remote and has a 
decided flavor of antiquity in comparison with the conditions and rapid 
pace of the present day, whether its distance behind us is measured by 
hundreds of years or only by decades. Linn county was first per- 
manently settled within the memory of men now living, and yet the 
chronicles of its early days read like chapters from an old and hoary 
past. 

And those days are, in fact, so far behind us in length of time, even, 
that there are few living witnesses of their continual succession of in- 
cident and adventure, their privations and hardships, their trials and 
triumphs, their incessant perils and countless hair-breadth escapes. 
Among the few remaining among the people of the county to tell the 
story of the pioneer period Edward C. Williams of Meadville is the old- 
est in years of residence in the county, and one of the oldest in the 



672 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

actual length of his life, as he is now on the way to the completion of 
the eighty-fourth year of his earthly existence. 

Mr. Williams was born in Washington county, Ohio, on December 
10, 1828. His father, Reuben Williams, was a native of Massachusetts, 
and his mother, whose maiden name was Elizabeth Johnson, was born 
in Connecticut. The father was reared in the state of New York and 
there learned the trade of a blacksmith, serving his apprenticeship in 
the city of Albany. During his young manhood he crossed the Blue 
Ridge and Alleghany mountains to Kentucky, and for a time worked at 
his trade at Frankfort in that state. From there he moved to Washing- 
ton county, Ohio, and located on the Muskingum river near the present 
city of Marietta, where he opened a shop. 

Here he was married to the mother, who had been in the party that 
crossed the mountains with him. They became the parents of twelve 
children, seven sons and five daughters, all of whom are now deceased 
but Edward C. and one of his sisters who lives in the state of Washing- 
ton. In 1840 the whole family, as it was then made up, took boat for 
northern Missouri, voyaging down the Ohio and up the Mississippi and 
the Missouri to Brunswick in Chariton county, the father bringing his 
tools and household effects with him, for he knew that such things were 
almost unattainable in the wilderness to which he was going. 

He worked at his trade in Brunswick the first winter and in 1841 
began farming on Salt creek in Chariton county. But he moved to 
Bedford in Livingston county, near its junction with Linn and Chariton 
counties, a short time afterward, and there he followed his craft until 
his death, which occurred in 1849. He was widely and favorably known 
in all three counties, and cordially esteemed by the people of each of 
them. The mother married again, uniting herself with a Mr. Jones, and 
died in 1854, leaving her children the priceless legacy of a good name, 
as did the father when he departed this life. 

Edward C. Williams was twelve years old when the family came 
to Missouri. Owing to the undeveloped state of the country where he 
lived, both in Ohio and in this state, he had very limited opportunities 
for schooling, and got but little education from books. At an early age 
he began learning his father's trade under that gentleman's instruction, 
and after mastering it worked at it in nearly every settlement in this 
section of the state, going from place to place, wherever his services 
were required, until in February of the year 1854. 

At that time he came to where Meadville now stands, which was 
then the midst of a large expanse of land under cultivation, and the site 
of the present town was rich and beautiful with a very promising 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 673 

growth of corn. In 1855 he opened a shop on the land now owned by 
Judge Thomas Evans, and this he conducted with profit for one year. 
In 1856 he yielded to the prevailing temptation of the region and 
became a farmer, taking up eighty acres of land, which he broke up and 
improved, and the title to which has never passed out of his hands. 
Later he bought eighty acres of school land in section 26, and this he 
also developed and improved, making two excellent farms out of the 
unbroken wilderness. And while clearing and improving his farms he 
also wrought industriously at his trade. 

But neither farming nor mechanical employment entirely filled his 
desires, and in 1864 he opened a general store in Meadville, which he 
conducted for two years, then moved his stock to Bedford and kept 
store there for three years. At the end of the period last mentioned he 
returned to his farm, but soon afterward opened another store at 
Wheeling in Livingston county, building for the purpose the second 
building put up in the town. He continued to do business in the mer- 
cantile line at that place until some time in the seventies, then once 
more returned to his farm, and to that he has devoted his time and 
energies ever since, or did until he retired from all active pursuits a 
few years ago. 

Mr. Wilhams was married on March 20, 1855, to Miss Margaret A. 
Belshe, a daughter of William Belshe, who became a resident of Linn 
county in 1834. Of the children born of the union two grew to maturity, 
William P., who has since died, and Nancy E., who is now the wife of 
William F. Van Dyke, of Meadville. The mother of these children died 
on December 14, 1906, after walking life's troubled way hand in hand 
with the father for fifty-one years and nearly nine months. 

Mr. Williams recalls, in looking back from the height of develop- 
ment and progress to which this county has attained to the dawn of its 
history, the time when Indians were still numerous in this locality. He 
did work at his forge for them frequently in repairing guns and pro- 
viding for their other mechanical wants, and while they were never 
unfriendly to him, they sometimes showed a feeling of hostility to other 
white men and the race of their conquerors in general. The one-time 
wild men of the forest and plains he worked for were mostly of the 
Sioux tribe, but he frequently saw members of other tribes who were 
visiting their Sioux brothers, or living among them temporarily. 

In his political relations Mr. Williams was in early life a Whig 
and one of the local leaders of the party. After the death of that 
political organization he became Independent, but for a number of 
years he has not taken an active part in political contests. He was 



674 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

made a Freema'son thirty-five years ago, and lias been constant in his 
devotion to his lodge duties ever since. His religious connection is with 
the Baptist church, of which he is a devout and consistent member, and 
has been for many years. 

Having almost reached the half-way mark between four score and 
four score years and ten, he has the reverence due a patriarch from the 
people among whom he has so long and so usefully lived and labored. 
He reminds the thoughtful observer of some genial year, drawing to its 
close undoubtedly, but with its seasons of warmth and beauty and fruit- 
fulness not yet wholly spent. His life has been free from blemish, full 
of service to the several communities in which he has dwelt, and worthy 
of all commendation. 



ALONZO L. BROWN 

So new to the world and in the domain of industrial production is 
Linn county, Missouri, in comparison with many other parts of the 
United States, and even some portions of this state, that Alonzo L. 
Brown, who lives near Purdin, enjoys an almost unique distinction in 
this locality in having been born on the farm which he now owns, occu- 
pies and cultivates, and his children represent the third generation of 
the same family drawing substance from its fruitful soil. 

Mr. Brown's life began on this farm on January 8, 1852, and he is 
a son of Henry T. and Susan (Hannah) Brown, the former a native of 
Howard county, Missouri, and the latter of Virginia. The father was 
brought to Linn county in his childhood by his father, Henry Brown, 
who moved from his native state of Kentucky to Howard county in this 
state, and a little later to this county. Here he entered a tract of wild 
land from the govemmnt and remained on it until the beginning of the 
Civil "War, when he returned to his former home in Howard county, 
where he died. He was the father of five sons and two daughters, all 
now deceased. 

His son, Henry T. Brown, father of Alonzo, grew to manhood in 
Linn county and took up, under a government patent or as a home- 
stead, the farm on which Alonzo now lives. He cleared, broke up and 
improved it to a considerable extent during his lifetime, and died on it 
in 1882, as did his wife in 1884. They were the parents of seven sons 
and three daughters, all of whom have died but two of the sons, Alonzo 
and his brother John, who lives in Linn county and is a farmer. 

The father was a great hunter of big game, killing bears and deer 
in large numbers, and also showed his prowess with the rifle by bring- 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 675 

ing down hundreds of wild turkeys, a feat that is said to require more 
than ordinary expertness and quickness of action with the gun, as 
well as unusual precaution and knowledge on the part of the hunter 
who gets this species of game. All forms of wild animal and bird life 
indigenous to this region were abundant in his young manhood, and 
they were plentiful even at a much later period. He knew where to 
find them, and when he went after them he got them, as everybody in 
the neighborhood knew. 

Alonzo L. Brown was reared on the farm and attended the schools 
of his boyhood, such as they were — limited in scope, rudely equipped, 
and irregular in sessions. While doing so he assisted his father in the 
work on the farm, helping to clear it of its wild growth, break up its 
stubborn glebe and bring it to responsive production under the persua- 
sive hand of the husbandman. In his youth and early manhood he was 
considerable of a hunter too, and followed in his father's footsteps in 
this respect, for game was still abundant in the township when he grew 
old enough to go after it. 

On September 13, 1888, Mr. Brown was married to Miss Effie Parr, 
a daughter of Howard Parr, who came to this county from Indiana in 
1866, and by this marriage became the father of four children, three of 
whom are living: Vernie E., Henry H. and Roy. Their father is a 
Democrat in political faith and allegiance and devoted to the interests 
of his party, although himself not desirous of any of the favors it has 
to bestow in the way of public office. His religious connection is with 
the Methodist Episcopal church, and he is prominent and very service- 
able to the congregation in which he holds his membership. In all 
parts of the county he is well and favorably known, and all classes of 
its people respect him for his genuine worth, good citizenship and ele- 
vated and upright manhood. 



JOHN SILAS CLARK 

Having sprung from the ranks of the sturdy and sterling plain 
people of this state and county, and been taught by the instructions and 
examples of his parents to rely on that class as the bone and sinew, the 
hope and reliance of the country in productiveness in times of peace 
and for stalwart defense when the institutions of the country are 
assailed by armed resistance or invasion, it is inevitable that John Silas 
Clark, of Locust Creek township, this county, should feel a strong and 
abiding interest in the welfare and advancement of the foundation 



676 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

stratum of our population, and that his life should have been passed 
from boyhood to the present time (1912) in exemplifying in his own 
citizenship the best traits in him. He is not in any sense or to any 
degree a demagogue or pretender. He believes in the force and com- 
mon sense of the common people, and in that respect he is a genuine 
American and true to all the traditions and best tendencies and instincts 
of our citizenship in this country. 

Mr. Clark is a native of Linn county, born in Locust Creek town- 
ship on August 20, 1867, and from his childhood has known no higher 
aspiration in life than an ardent desire to contribute, as far as possible 
in his day and generation, to the general welfare and substantial 
advancement of the residents of his locality and its progress and im- 
provement along every line of wholesome and enduring development. 
He is a son of Z. W. and Jane Ellen (Fore) Clark, who were industrious 
and progressive farmers, and sought no distinction beyond that of 
doing as well as they could their full duty in exemplifying and spread- 
ing the benefits of progressive farming. 

The family has been active in the history of northern Missouri for 
at least three generations, Mr. Clark's grandfather having been a 
prominent and influential citizen of Linn county for many years, and 
having died here in the fullness of years and public esteem. The father 
came to Linn county as a child and passed the remainder of his days 
among its people, and repeated on its soil the excellent record made by 
the grandfather, with such changes and variations as the difference in 
surroundings and conditions required. 

John S. Clark was educated in the public schools of Linn county 
and from his boyhood has been engaged in farming. While growing to 
manhood and attending school he assisted his father on the home farm, 
and when he took up the burden of life for himself, he did it in the 
domain of useful endeavor to which he had been trained, and to which 
his tastes and desires were wedded. Having no other aspiration in life 
than that of becoming the best and most successful farmer his circum- 
stances would allow, he has given his chosen occupation close and care- 
ful study, and kept pace with its progress in every way, having full 
knowledge of the theory of his business and showing its verity and 
reliability in practical achievements. 

He has been earnestly and helpfully interested in the welfare and 
progress of his community, and has never withheld his hand from any 
worthy enterprise involving its advancement. But he has taken no 
active part in political contests, fraternal organizations, or any other 
activity than that in which he is engaged. In respect to national ques- 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 677 

tions he votes steadily with the Democratic party, as he is a firm 
believer in its principles and theories of government. But in local 
affairs he considers only the good of his township and county, and 
ignores all party and personal claims on his favor, yet never neglects 
the duty of a good citizen to give every local issue studious attention 
and support the side and candidates that seem most likely to promote 
the general weal and to provide most effectually for the public good. 
Mr. Clark was married on March 4, 1896, to Miss Clara Westgate, 
a daughter of George W. and Jeanne tte (Cochrane) Westgate, of Linn 
county, she being a native of Linn county. Only one of the three chil- 
dren born of their union is living, their son John Westgate Clark. The 
religious connection of the family is with the Methodist Episcopal 
Church South, and in the congregation to which he belongs the father 
is an ardent worker and a highly appreciated member. In all the 
requirements of citizenship he is manly, zealous, independent and serv- 
iceable. And it is to the credit of the people around him that they 
appreciate him at his true value. 



EDGAR H. SCHROCK 

For many years an enterprising and progressive farmer in Sullivan 
county, this state, and for a number a prosperous and successful busi- 
ness man in Linn county, Edgar H. Schrock, now living retired from 
all active pursuits in Linneus, has dignified and adorned the citizen- 
ship of northern Missouri in a way that is gratifying to all the people 
of this section and highly creditable to himself. When he farmed he 
farmed with all his might and applied to all his operations good judg- 
ment and comprehensive intelligence; and when he was in business he 
was governed by the same forces of close application, judicious exami- 
nation of conditions and requirements and a studious knowledge of all 
the ins and outs of trade. 

Mr. Schrock was born in Sullivan county, Missouri, in 1851, and 
is a son of James W. and Sarah (Burns) Schrock, the former a native 
of Hampsl/ire county, Virginia, now West Virginia, and the latter of 
Franklin county, Missouri. The father was born in 1828 and grew to 
the age of fifteen and obtained his education in his native county. In 
1843 the family came to Missouri to live, making the long jaunt from 
their former home with wagon teams, and located on government land 
in Sullivan county. The land was wild and unbroken, and its occupants 
had to begin at the very foundation of building a good farm out of it. 



678 HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 

But they were equal to the task, and in time they made the wilderness 
in which they settled glad and profitable with all the fruits of syste- 
matic productiveness. 

On this farm the mother died in 1895 and the father in 1902. They 
were devout members of the Methodist Episcopal church and potent 
forces in starting that denomination on its luminous career of useful- 
ness and benefaction in this part of the state. Two sons and three 
daughters blessed their union and brightened their family fireside, and 
of the five, two are now living. The paternal grandfather, Perez 
Schrock, was also a native of Virginia. He was a farmer and moved to 
Missouri in 1843, as has been stated. He died on his farm in Sullivan 
county about 1868, and his wife, whose maiden name was Nancy Long, 
died in Linn county in 1880. They were the parents of eight sons and 
eight daughters, all now deceased. The great grandfather, whose name 
was also Perez Schrock, came to this country from Germany and set- 
tled in Virginia at an early date. 

Edgar H. Schrock attained his manhood in Sullivan county and 
farmed there for a number of years, and during a portion of the time 
he was also engaged in merchandising at Browning and Scottsville, just 
over the line in this county. In 1904 he moved to Linneus, and for three 
years thereafter was busy in the hardware business in that city. At 
the end of that period he retired from business, and since then he has 
been enjoying a well-earned rest and the fruits of his long and profitable 
labors. 

In 1872 Mr. Schrock was united in marriage with Miss Laura A. 
Garrett, a daughter of William H. and Missouri F. (Hickam) Garrett, 
the former a native of Kentucky and the latter of Booiiue county, this 
state. Mr. Garrett was a ''forty-niner," and in less than two years 
cleaned up in California $2,500, which he made in business in that state 
and brought back to Missouri in gold. With this he bought a farm in 
Linn county, and this was the nucleus of the very comfortable estate 
he accumulated. He came to Missouri from his native state in 1856. 

Mr. and Mrs. Schrock have two children, both daughters : Leona 
E., who is now the wife of D. R. Clark and resides in Linneus; and 
Bessie G., who married with E. L. Morris, and has her home in Lin- 
neus. Their father has belonged to the Masonic order for many years 
and has always taken a great interest in the affairs of the fraternity. 
He has at all times in his mature life been deeply and practically in- 
terested in the welfare of the community in which he lived, and done 
whatever he could to promote the substantial and enduring good of its 
residents. His public spirit has always been guided by intelligence 



HISTORY OF LINX COUNTY 679 

and applied to securing direct and immediate results, and has been 
very effective on that account. The people of Linn county regard him 
as one of their best and most representative citizens, and all classes 
admire and esteem him for his genuine worth, his genial and unassum- 
ing manner and his high character. 



JOSEPH HEMMINGS 

Widely known and highly esteemed as is the interesting subject of 
this brief memoir, throughout Linn county and in many other parts of 
Missouri, he is not a native of this state, or even of this country. But 
he has been a resident of the United States since he was eight years of 
age, and of Marceline from the year when the town was founded. He 
passed his first three years of life in this country in Boston, Massachu- 
setts, a number thereafter in Wisconsin, and twenty-five in Kansas. 
But he is so thoroughly imbued with the spirit of the people of Linn 
county, so deeply interested in the county's progress and improvement, 
and so earnest and effective in promoting that and the welfare of the 
people around him, that unless one knew to the contrary, he might 
believe the gentleman had been a resident of this locality all his life. 

Mr. Hemmings was born near Bristol, England, on April 15, 1848. 
His parents, Samuel and Sarah (Freddy) Hemmings, were also natives 
of England, and belonged to families domesticated in that country for 
many generations. They came to the United States in 1856 and took 
up their residence in Boston, where they remained until 1859. They 
then moved their family to Wisconsin, and in that state they died a 
number of years afterward. They were the parents of six children, 
two daughters and four sons. Three of the number are living, Joseph 
Hemmings and his brother and sister. The father was a cabinet maker 
and wrought at his trade both in his native land and in all the localities 
of his residence in this country. 

Joseph Hemmings began his education in England, continued it in 
Boston and completed it in Wisconsin. Li 1864, when he was but six- 
teen years old, he left his home and went to Kansas, locating at Neosho 
Falls in 1887, where he was connected with merchandising first as 
employe and afterward as proprietor for a period of nearly twenty- 
five years, remaining there until 1888. In that year Marceline was 
founded, and he learned of its promising possibilities, and at once 
sought the benefits of them, and the opportunities they afforded for 
advancement to enterprise, thrift and business ability. 



680 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

He was sent to this locality, however, in the line of duty and in a 
capacity which gave scope for the full employment of his active mind 
and highly trained faculties. The Santa Fe Town & Land Company 
employed him to act as its assistant land agent here, and he sold the 
first town lots disposed of within the limits of the present city. He 
served the Town & Land Company with fidelity and success for two 
years, then became manager of the Marceline Coal and Prospecting 
Company. A few years after its organization this company sold its 
holdings and business to the Kansas & Texas Coal Company, and in 
1893 C. J. Devlin bought that company out. He failed in 1905, and 
the property and business of the original company, and subsequent 
additions, are now owned by the Marceline Coal and Mining Company. 

Mr. Hemmings has been the manager and controlling spirit in the 
business during all these years and through all the successive changes 
of ownership. He has been the leading man and the most potential 
force in the development of the coal mining industry in this region. 
He has also been all the time in control of the company's store, and in 
this position has been able to popularize the ownership of the property 
with the men employed by it, and so keep the industry going at the 
highest rate of speed and with satisfaction all around. He is, in addi- 
tion, at the time of this writing (1912) manager of the Marceline Mer- 
cantile Company, one of the large and progressive merchandising estab- 
lishments of Linn county. 

Mr. Hemmings is a Republican in politics, and is deeply and intelli- 
gently interested in public affairs. But he has always been averse to 
public station, and has never sought a political office either by election 
or appointment. But he did, on one occasion, yield to the persuasion 
of the people and the voice of duty, and consent to serve as city clerk 
of Marceline for three years, being the first man to occupy that office. 
While not seeking to serve the public as an official, he is, nevertheless, 
earnestly and actively interested in the welfare of his township and 
county, and the enduring good of their residents, and he manifests this 
by cordial and liberal support of all worthy undertakings for the im- 
provement of his locality, its progress and development, and the in- 
crease of its importance in the mercantile, industrial, civic and social 
life of the state. 

On January 17, 1880, Mr. Hemmings was united in marriage with 
Miss MeVina McConnell, a native of Illinois. They have two children, 
their daughters Jennie and Harriet M. Jennie is still living at home 
with her parents, and Harriet M. is the wife of George L. Smith, of 
Brookfield. The members of the family belong to the Congregational 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 631 

church, in the good work of which the father takes an active part. 
He is regarded throughout the county, and wherever else he is known, 
as a first-rate business man, an excellent citizen, a gentleman of high 
character and fine social culture, and a potent force for good in his 
community. The people everywhere respect him as such, and it is to 
their credit that they fully appreciate his worth and his great useful- 
ness among them. 



MANLY H. TAYLOR 

Manly H. Taylor, junior member of the hardware firm of Brown & 
Taylor, of Marceline, has been a resident of Linn county and Marceline 
township, as it is now, forty-four years, or since he was ten years old, 
and until 1898 was an active force in its agricultural industry, as he 
is in some measure yet. He has added to the wealth and importance of 
the county by his vigorous and progressive farming, dignified and 
adorned its citizenship by his upright and sterling manhood, helped in 
directing its public energies along lines otf wholesome progress and 
development by his public spirit and enterprise, and aided in giving 
tone and high character to its mercantile activity by his elevated and 
straightforward course as a merchant. The people of his township and 
the whole county know him well and regard him as one of their most 
useful and representative citizens from every point of view. 

Mr. Taylor is a native of Wisconsin, where he was born on Febru- 
ary 23, 1857. He is a son of Erastus and Elizabeth (Howe) Taylor, 
natives of Genesee county. New York. The father was born in 1832 and 
passed the whole of his life as a farmer, except a few years which he 
devoted to teaching school, and the period of the Civil War, during 
which he was in the Union army fighting for the preservation of the 
country from sectional dismemberment, and all the horrors incident 
to such a disaster. 

In his young manhood he moved from the state of New York to 
Wisconsin, and there engaged in teaching school until the beginning of 
the war. In response to the first call to arms for the defense of the 
Union he enlisted in the Wisconsin Volunteer Infantry, and in this 
regiment he served the full three years of his term of enlistment. His 
command saw a great deal of active service and took part in several 
of the historic battles of the great and momentous conflict between 
the sections of our unhappy country, but he escaped from all the 
carnage unharmed, and at the close of the war returned to his Wis- 



683 HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 

consin home. He soon afterward, however, moved to Minnesota, where 
he lived one year. 

In 1867 he came to this county and bought a farm one mile north 
of Marceline. It was all unbroken prairie, virgin to the plow and as 
yet had never heard the commanding voice of the husbandman or felt 
the impulse of his persuasive hand. Mr. Taylor awakened the re- 
sponsive soil to systematic productiveness by his well-applied industry 
and skill as a farmer, and made the farm his home for twenty years. 
At the end of that period he returned to his native state, where he 
remained thirteen years. He then came back to Missouri, and he died 
in Linn county in 1907. 

Mrs. Taylor, his widow, is still living in this county. They were 
the parents of three sons, all of whom are living, but Manly H. is the 
only one of the three who resides in Linn county. The father was a 
Republican in politics and a member of the Methodist Episcopal church 
in his religious affiliation. His father, John Taylor, was a native of 
Massachusetts, but early in life moved from that state to Genesee 
county. New York, where -he passed the remainder of his days. The 
family on the father's side is of English descent, but members of it 
have lived in this country for many generations, its progenitor on 
American soil having come over in an early period in the history of 
our country. 

Manly H. Taylor was between ten and eleven years of age when 
his parents located in this county. He grew to manhood on his father's 
farm, taking part in the useful labor of cultivating it and attending the 
district school in the neighborhood. He remained on the farm and 
assisted in its management and work until 1898. He then entered into 
partnership with Mr. Brown as a member of the present firm of Brown 
& Taylor, and since doing so has given his attention mainly to the 
affairs of the business, although he still owns and superintends his 
farm. 

On February 2.3, 1887, Mr. Taylor united in marriage with Miss 
Bertha E. Phillips, a native of the state of New York, like himself. Her 
parents, Josiah and Emma S. (Crane) Phillips, moved to Missouri 
and Linn county in 1868, and have resided here ever since. Mr. and 
Mrs. Taylor have five children: Gene P., Don B., Winifred, Kenneth 
and Manly H., Jr. While earnestly and intelligently interested in the 
progress and improvement of his township and county, the father has 
taken no active part in political contentions beyond doing a good citi- 
zen's part by voting according to his convictions as to men and mea- 
sures for the best interests of his locality. But he has never stayed 



HISTOEY OF LINX COUNTY 683 

his hand or withheld his counsel with reference to projects of value 
for the advance of the region in which he lives, and his aid has been 
potential in promoting all he has deemed advisable and worthy of sup- 
port. Fraternally he holds membership in the Independent Order of 
Odd Fellows. He is regarded as one of Linn county's best and most 
representative men and citizens, and all classes of its people respect 
him highly and many admire him warmly for his genuine worth. 



JOHN A. HESS 



Few farmers, if any, stand higher in the regard of the people of 
Bucklin township than John A. Hess, and the good will and esteem they 
have for him is based on demonstrated merit and genuine worth as a 
man and as a citizen. He is admired and taken as an example, also 
as an enterprising and progressive farmer, and his farm shows by its 
appearance and general condition that his example is well worthy of 
imitation anywhere. He has been a resident of Linn county seven 
years, and in each of them has made a record that has been greatly to 
his credit and has strengthened his hold on the confidence and good 
opinion of the people around him, 

Mr. Hess is a native of Clark county, Missouri, where his life 
began on June 8, 1867. His parents, Simon and Mary (Voght) Hess 
were born in Germany, in the province of Hesse. The father was a 
farmer in his native land and also served three years in the German 
army. He came to the United States in 1866 and located in Clark 
county, Missouri, where he is still living, and following in this country 
the pursuit which engaged his faculties in the Fatherland. In Clark 
county he met with and married his wife, the mother of John A. Hess 
and his two brothers, all of whom are living, but John is the only mem- 
ber of the family residing in Linn county. The mother died in 1898, 
after many years of useful and upright living, fidelity to her duties 
as a wife and mother, and earnest and helpful activity in behalf of all 
her neighbors, friends and the community in general. 

John A. Hess grew to manhood on his father's farm in Clark 
county and obtained what education he could in the district schools in 
the neighborhood. He remained at home working with his father on 
the parental homestead until his marriage on March 17, 1891, to Miss 
Emma Seyb, a native of Lee county, Iowa, and the daughter of Michael 
and Elizabeth (Rauscher) Seyb, the former a native of Germany and 
the latter of Ohio. He then determined to set up a domestic altar of 



684 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

his own and began farming on his own account. He and his wife have 
three children, their son, Harold S. and their twin daughters, Ella M. 
and Ruth E., all of whom are still living under the shelter of the paren- 
tal rooftree and assisting in the labors of the farm and the household. 

In 1904 the family moved to Linn county and the father bought 
240 acres of land two miles and a half south of Bucklin, on which he 
has resided ever since. He has erected on this farm a fine modern 
dwelling, good barns and other necessary structures, making for his 
family a very comfortable and attractive home, and has cultivated it 
with every care and advanced intelligence, thereby securing full returns 
for his labor and at the same time steadily increasing the value of his 
land. 

Mr. Hess has not, however, confined his energies and activity en- 
tirely to his own business. He is a man of public spirit and progres- 
siveness in regard to public affairs and takes an earnest interest and 
a helpful part in endeavoring to have them properly administered. He 
is also zealous in his efforts to aid in the development and improve- 
ment of his township and county, add to the comfort and convenience 
of their people and promote the general welfare in every way open to 
him. The educational forces, the moral agencies, the religious institu- 
tions and the social energies of the region in which he lives all enlist 
his interest and have his cordial support and that of all the members 
of his family. He and his wife belong to the Evangelical church and 
are active participants in all the good works of the congregation in 
which they hold their membership. The whole family is held in high 
esteem wherever its members are known. 



DR. CATHERINE STANDLY 

Pioneers in any line of activity and usefulness are always worthy 
of high regard. No matter what the line of utility may be, those who 
open it to the service of mankind, and blaze the way for their followers 
who are to develop it to greater fruitfulness, extend it to wider fields 
of operation and lift it to loftier heights of power, have a credit due 
them which no achievements of their successors can belittle. The men 
and women who opened this region to civilization, and founded its civil 
and religious institutions, are justly enshrined in the hearts of the 
people of the present day as worthy of their highest veneration. The 
same condition is true in other domains of effort, though less noted and 
commended, and in them, oft-times, nerve, endurance and perseverance 



HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 685 

under difficulties are required in as great a degree as contests with wild 
beasts and savage men, the fury of the elements and privation of the 
ordinary comforts of life, in an unsettled country, has ever exacted. 

Dr. Catherine Standly, of Brookfield, is in some measure a type of 
the pioneers of enterprise in departments of useful labor apart from 
the subjugation and settlement of the wilderness. She was the first 
and is yet the only lady physician in this part of Missouri, and it must 
have required courage and determination of a high order on her part 
to enter alone upon a field of work until recently not occupied by the 
gentler sex of our race, and from which an unreasonable prejudice 
actually barred them. But she chose her life work after mature delib- 
eration, and when her face was once turned toward it, she never for a 
moment hesitated in pushing her way in pursuit of all it had to offer 
to capacity and faithful industry. Her success in it has fully justified 
her choice and nobly crowned her heroism. 

Dr. Standly is a native of Linn county and the place of her birth 
was Laclede. She is a daughter of Dr. Z. T. and Jennie (Vance) 
Standly, both born and reared at Paris, Illinois. Further mention is 
made of the former in the sketch of her father. Dr. Z. T. Standly, 
which will be found elsewhere in this volume. 

Their daughter Catherine, tlie interesting subject of these para- 
graphs, passed through all the grades of the schools in Laclede, and was 
graduated from the highest of them in her academic studies. Having 
made up her mind that she could do well for herself and also serve her 
fellow creatures substantially by devoting herself to the science of 
medicine, she began the study of it under the direction and instruction 
of her father. In 1898 she became a student in the medical depart- 
ment of the University of Illinois, from which she was graduated in 
1902. After passing one year as an interne at the Mary Tompson hos- 
pital in Chicago, she selected Brookfield, this county, as the center of 
her practice, and took up her residence here at once, losing no time in 
starting on her professional career. 

The doctor is a specialist in diseases of women and children, and 
has established herself firmly in the confidence and regard of the people 
of Linn county by her knowledge of her science, theoretical and prac- 
tical, her excellent judgment and skill in the application of that knowl- 
edge, her geniality of disposition and her general culture and excellence 
as a woman. In order to keep abreast of the department of profes- 
sional intelligence and work with which she is connected, she has pur- 
sued special courses of instruction at the Chicago Post Graduate School 
and been an industrious and thoughtful reader of the best literature of 



68G HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

her profession, especially that which bears on her particular lines of 
practice in it. 

She has also been a strong believer in the frequent comparison of 
experiences and interchange of ideas as a valuable means of broaden- 
ing and systematizing knowledge, and has for some years been an active 
member of the county and state medical societies and the American 
Medical Association, and for two years served with credit to herself 
and benefit to the organization as president of the Linn County Medical 
Society. It is greatly to the credit of the people of the county that they 
appreciate the merit of this lady at its full value and hold her in the 
highest esteem. And it is equally creditable to her associates in the 
medical profession in the county that they cheerfully and admiringly 
accord to her the true rank among them to which she is richly entitled. 

Since the above was written she was married December 14, 1911, to Walter Brownlee, 
giving up her practice for a domestic life. 



WILLIAM A. BORLAND 

For forty-four years this skillful and successful farmer has lived 
on the Clay township farm which he now owns, and during all of that 
period has devoted his energies to its improvement and judicious culti- 
vation, during a portion of the time in connection with and under the 
supervision of his father, but for more than twenty years as its owner 
and sole proprietor. He has helped to make it very valuable and 
attractive as a country home, and by his industry, energy and mastery 
of his business has brought it to a high state of cultivation and pro- 
ductiveness. 

Mr. Borland was born, reared and educated in Franklin county, 
Ohio, where his life began on October 4, 1844. He came to Missouri 
and Linn county with his parents in 1868, when he was twenty-four 
years old, and the farm, which was then an unbroken and uncultivated 
expanse, which he helped to clear, break up and bring to fruitfulness, 
has been his home ever since. His parents, John F. and Mary A. 
(Carder) Borland, were also born and reared in Franklin county, Ohio, 
and farmed there until 1868, when they moved to this county and 
located on this farm. The mother died here in 1878 and the father in 
1888. They had seven children, all of whom are now deceased but two. 
The father served in a number of local offices, and was a man of conse- 
quence in the township. The grandfather, William Borland, was born 
in Ireland and came to this country soon after the establishment of the 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 687 

present fonii of government. He first resided for a while in Pennsyl- 
vania and then moved to Ohio at an early day in the history of the 
state. He was a soldier in the War of 1812. 

William A. Borland, as has been noted, came to Linn county with 
his parents after attaining his majority. He remained at home with 
his parents after their arrival in this county and helped to clear and 
farm the wild land on which the family located. Prior to this, how- 
ever, he left his Ohio home for a time in the service of his country, 
enlisting in 1862 in Company D, Ninety-fifth Ohio Volunteer Infantry, 
in which he served to the close of the war, three years in all. He took 
part in the battle of Richmond, Kentucky ; the siege of Vicksburg, Mis- 
sissippi, and the hard fought conflict in Nashville, Tennessee, and also 
participated in numerous engagements of a less important character. 
After the war was over he returned to his Ohio home, and since then 
has always been engaged in general farming on a progressive scale. 

Mr. Borland was married on January 4, 1880, to Miss Ida Norvell, 
a daughter of Francis Norvell, who came to Linn county from Ken- 
tucky in 1845. One child has been born of the union, a daughter named 
Gertie, who is now the wife of Oliver Harvey. In political faith and 
allegiance Mr. Borland is a Republican and loyal at all times to the 
principles of his party. In church connection he is a Presbyterian and 
his wife a Baptist. They are true to their church duties, as they are to 
all others, being excellent citizens and warmly and practically interested 
in the progress and further development of their township and county 
and the promotion of their welfare in every way. They are favorably 
known throughout Linn county and in every part of it are highly 
respected. They are prosperous in their business, too, and esteemed 
wherever they are known as good farmers, whose work is an example 
to the people around them and whose general worth is highly com- 
mendable. Clay township has no better citizens, and none for whom 
the people generally have a higher regard. They are modest as to their 
merits, but their friends and acquaintances every^vhere know how to 
estimate them properly. 



HARVEY S. JOHNSON 

Although young yet in years, Harvey S. Johnson, county clerk of 
Linn county, has been well prepared hj education and training in offi- 
cial duties for the position he now holds, and is filling with such entire 
satisfaction to the people. They note his capacity, his fidelity to duty, 
his obliging disposition and his careful attention to their interests and 



688 HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 

those of the county, and they realize that they acted wisely in ele,cting 
him to the office. 

Mr. Johnson is a native of "the dark and bloody ground," Ken- 
tucky, which has made a spectacular figure in every phase of our his- 
tory, and won great renown for its people in each of them. He was 
born in Fleming county of that state on April 2, 1880, but became a 
resident of Missouri and Linn county when he was but four years old. 
His parents, Benjamin F. and Mary (Dillon) Johnson, were prosperous 
farmers in Kentucky until the spring of 1884, when they moved to 
this county and located on a farm a short distance east of the town 
of Browning, and began farming operations according to the most 
advanced and approved methods of this period. The father is also 
extensively engaged in rearing and dealing in cattle and mules. 

The son began his education in the rural schools of Linn county 
and completed it at the Chillicothe Normal School, which he attended 
in 1898 and 1899. After leaving that institution he returned to his home 
on his father's farm, and during the next two years did his part of the 
work of cultivating it and pushing forward its development and im- 
provement. He determined to try his hand in another line of endeavor, 
and in 1901 entered mercantile life at Browning. He followed this with 
a gratifying measure of success until 1903, when he was appointed 
deputy county clerk by Benjamin B. Edwards, then county clerk, but 
in failing health. 

He entered upon his duties with alacrity, and in a short time 
exhibited so thorough a mastery of the requirements of the office that 
when Mr. Edwards died, ending a very useful and appreciated life and 
public service of a high order, the governor of the state readily yielded 
to the preponderating voice of the people, and appointed the deputy to 
serve out the unexpired term. When the time came for another elec- 
tion, in 1906, the action of the governor was fully justified by the people 
of the county, who elected Mr. Johnson for the succeeding term in 
the office. 

In politics Mr. Johnson is a Democrat and always loyal to his 
party and energetic and effective in its service. As a citizen he is pro- 
gressive, public-spirited and enterprising, enthusiastic in his support 
of every worthy undertaking for the development and improvement of 
the county and the betterment of its people. But he applies his energies 
in this behalf with intelligence and judgment, and seeks the advance- 
ment of his locality only along lines of wholesome progress, involving 
enduring welfare and substantial advantages of permanent value. 

Socially he is very popular, a welcome addition to all good circles 



*.» 



I 






#'\ 



EUGENE STURTEVANT 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY • 689 

and a fruitful contributor to their enjoyment. He is a gentleman of 
high character, superior intelligence and a most genial and companion- 
able nature. In every relation of life he is a type of the best citizenship 
of Linn county, of western push, enterprise and resourcefulness, of 
patriotic devotion to the interests of his country — of elevated Ameri- 
can manhood in every way, and he is universally appreciated and 
esteemed as such wherever he is known and by the people of all classes 
and conditions. 



EUGENE STURTEVANT 

While himself a man of peace, with all his years and energies to 
the present time (1912) employed in the domain of production, Eugene 
Sturtevant, one of the leading farmers and stock men of the Grantsville 
township, this county, comes of a martial strain, his father having been 
a soldier in the Civil War and his grandfather one in the War of 1812. 
He would not hesitate to follow their examples if occasion required it, 
but happily in his day there has been no great demand for volunteers 
to either defend the country from foreign invasion or the Union from 
dismemberment. 

Mr. Sturtevant is a native of Sandusky county, Ohio, born on July 
19, 1857, and one of the two living children and sons of Lyman and 
Elsie Jane (George) Sturtevant. The father was born on October 17, 
1837, in Jefferson county, New York, and was reared there until he 
reached the age of seventeen. About 1854 the family moved to San- 
dusky county, Ohio, and there, having completed his education in the 
district schools of his native county, he worked on his father's farm for 
some years. At the beginning of the Civil War, when that tornado of 
death and disaster burst forth on the country, he promptly joined the 
forces mustering for the defense of the Union, and the next three years 
found him in the army, and facing death on many a sanguinary field 
of bitter conflict. As a member of Company A 72 Ohio Volunteer 
Infantry, serving three years with the army of the Potomac, taking 
part in the batle of the Wilderness, Petersburg and others. 

After the term of his service expired he returned to his Ohio home, 
and in 1870 moved to Missouri and took up his residence in Linn county 
about seven miles north of Brookfield, and devoted his attention to 
farming. He was married on December 10, 1855, to Miss Elsie Jane 
George, and they became the parents of three children, two of whom 
are living, Eugene and his brother M. G., a sketch of whom will 
be found in this volume. The father was for many years one of the 



690 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

most active and serviceable members of the Grand Army of the Re- 
public in this part of the comitry, holding his membership in the Post 
located in Brookfield. 

Eugene Sturtevant was thirteen years old when his parents moved 
from their old Ohio home to their new one in this county. Here he 
grew to manhood and completed his education, turning his attention to 
farming, the occupation of his forefathers for several generations, as 
soon as he left school. He now owns a farm of 280 acres seven miles 
north of Brookfield, which is near the old family homestead and one of 
the best in the township. Its natural richness and fertility have been 
increased by the careful and intelligent cultivation bestowed on it, and 
the buildings and other improvements are in keeping with the rest of 
its attractions and elements of value, which are all of a high order. 

On February 15, 1880, Mr. Sturtevant was united in marriage with 
Miss Zylpha D. Lambert, and they became the parents of one child, 
their daughter Mabel Eugenia, who is now (1912) traveling in Europe 
She is a graduate of the Law Department of State University and was 
the successful contestant as best law student open to all nations, for a 
trip around the world. Having lost his first wife, the father, on Feb- 
ruary 23, 1895, married a second, uniting himself at this time with Miss 
Mary J. Thompson. They also have one child, their son Roy L., who is 
living at home with his parents, and assisting in the work on the farm 
and the management of the extensive business in rearing and feeding 
cattle for the markets, which his father has been conducting during 
the last twenty years or longer. 

Mr. Sturtevant 's paternal grandfather, Charles Sturtevant, who 
was a man of much more than ordinary intelligence, force of character 
and influence, was born in Jefferson county, New York, and moved to 
Sandusky county, Ohio, in 1846, and died there on November 10, 1863. 
He was a soldier in the War of 1812, as has been stated, and at all 
times, in war and peace, took an earnest interest in the welfare of his 
country, and employed all his energies in seeking to promote it. He 
filled a number of local offices while living in New York, and rose to 
prominence among the people of his county, as he did among those of 
his new locality in Ohio. His public spirit and breadth of view made 
him a leader, and his intelligence and energy in carrying out whatever 
he undertook sustained him in that relation to his community, wher- 
ever he lived. His memory is still warmly cherished in Ohio, and the 
beneficial force of his example as a citizen is often referred to in the 
section of the state in which he passed the last years of his useful 
and appreciated life. 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 691 

Mr. Eugene Sturtevant has served four years as trustee of 
Grantsville T. P. and as collector for two years and a member of the 
T. P. board for the Post six years. In politics he is a Republican, and 
is also a member of I. 0. 0. F. Wife is member of Baptist church. 



HOWARD T. MURRAIN 

It is not surprising that the leading industry of Linn county is 
farming, and it would not be if there were other great industries avail- 
able from mineral deposits or other sources. For the land is so fertile 
and responsive, the climate is so genial and uniform from year to year, 
and the seasons are so regular in circuit and character that farming is 
a pleasure, and under any kind of ordinary circumstances is almost cer- 
tain to be profitable in this part of the great state of Missouri. Men 
of almost every taste and condition in life turn to agriculture in this 
locality as the pursuit most likely to bring them good returns for their 
labor and least likely to delude them with false hopes. 

Among the men who have found this domain of human endeavor 
profitable and reliable, Howard T. Murrain, of Locust Creek township, 
who lives in the vicinity of Purdin, is prominent and has made an excel- 
lent record as a progressive and successful farmer. He was born in this 
county in 1860, and is a son of George and Louisa (Turner) Murrain, 
the former a native of Virginia and the latter of Kentucky. The father 
was a farmer, and came with his father, Gilliam Murrain, to Missouri 
and Linn county in 1837. The family located north and east of Lin- 
neus, where the grandfather of Howard cleared a farm, carving it out 
of the wilderness, and transforming its unpruned luxuriance of produc- 
tion into succeeding harvests of the fruits of systematic cultivation. 

Gilliam Murrain was a soldier in the War of 1812, and when a 
young man was united in marriage with Miss Elizabeth Mitchell. They 
had three sons and six daughters that grew to maturity. Their son 
George was reared from an early age to manhood in this county, and 
was married here. During the earlier part of the Civil War he served 
in the home militia, and while in that service died from the effects of 
exposure in 1862. The mother and three of their four children, Mrs. 
Emma Shoup, of Hamilton, Missouri, and Mrs. D. L. Marshall, of 
Brookfield, Missouri, are living. The mother's father, Absalom Turner, 
died in Kentucky, and a few years later his widow married as her 
second husband Benjamin Burt, who came to Linn county to live in 



692 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

1841, and located near Miles' mill. He died while crossing the plains 
to the gold fields of California in 1849. 

Howard T. Murrain grew to manhood in this county and obtained 
his education in the Linneus schools. While attending school he 
worked on the farms, and after completing his education continued to 
do so until he took up the struggle for advancement among men for 
himself. Then, being trained to farming, he sought no other occupa- 
tion, and this he has adhered to ever since. By his energy, thrift and 
good management he has made his calling profitable and himself one 
of the substantial farmers of his township. He has also been promi- 
nent in the public affairs of the township, serving it as collector for a 
number of years. 

Politically Mr. Murrain trains with the Republican party, but, 
while he is always eager for its success because he is a firm believer 
in its principles, he is not an active partisan. His religious connection 
is with the Methodist Episcopal church, and fraternally he belongs to 
the Order of Odd Fellows. On May 6, 1894, he was married to Miss 
Nellie Purdin, a daughter of Alexander and Susan M. (Southerland) 
Purdin, and by this marriage has become the father of two children, 
his son Alexander T. and his daughter Edma L. His farm is proof of 
his skill and vigor, his intelligence and his progressiveness as a farmer, 
and the general esteem in which he is held shows his high standing 
as a man and a citizen. 



LEE A. WILSON 



Of Virginia ancestry, Ohio parentage and Linn county, Missouri, 
nativity, Lee A. Wilson, a prominent and successful farmer of Clay 
township, is connected in his family history with three of the great 
commonwealths of the American Union, and his record shows that he 
possesses many of the salient characteristics which distinguish the 
residents of them all. By inheritance and training he has the traits 
prominent in the two older states, and by actual residence among the 
people of Missouri he has acquired the habits and customs peculiar to 
them, the aspirations they cherish, the motives which impel them and 
the state pride they so justly feel. 

Mr. Wilson was born in this county on January 4, 1883. His par- 
ents, Enoch G. and Amy (Marple) Wilson, were therefore not early 
arrivals here and do not rank among the county's revered pioneers. 
But they were excellent citizens of their day and esteemed as such. 
They were natives of Licking county, Ohio, where the father was born 



HISTORY OF LINN" COUNTY 693 

in 1833 and the mother a few years later. They grew to maturity in 
their native state and were married there in 1864. The father was a 
school teacher in that state and also did some farming there. One year 
after his marriage he and his young wife came to Missouri and located 
in Livingston county, where they lived fifteen years on a farm they 
redeemed from the wilderness and developed into value. 

In 1880 they moved to this county and took up their residence on 
the farm in Clay township now owned and cultivated by their son Lee. 
It, also was unimproved when they took possession of it, and they 
erected the buildings and made the other improvements on it, having 
bought the land in its totally uncultivated state. On this farm the 
father died in 1889. Their offspring numbered four: Lillian, who is 
now the widow of W. J. McCollum; Eliza B., who is the wife of Fran- 
cis W. Thompson and has her home with him in the state of Oklahoma; 
Nellie, who married Joseph Perry and now lives in Linn county; 
and Lee A. 

The father always took an active and serviceable part in the 
affairs of the locality in which he lived. He served as assessor and 
collector of taxes while living in Livingston county, and in every other 
way open to him contributed to the welfare and advancement of his 
home township there and here. Fraternally he was a Freemason and 
in religious affiliation was connected with the Methodist Episcopal 
church. The grandfather was born and reared in Virginia and moved 
to Ohio in his young manhood. He passed the remainder of his life 
farming in that state and died in Newark, Licking county, well 
advanced in years. 

Lee A. Wilson has passed the whole of his life to this time (1912) 
in Linn county. He was educated in the public schools and from the 
dawn of his manhood has been engaged in farming on the land his 
father redeemed from the wilderness. He has been successful in his 
operations, and is accounted one of the best farmers in Clay township. 
He is also one of the township's most appreciated and acceptable citi- 
zens, with warm interest in its welfare and the progress and benefit of 
its residents in every way. He is a member of the Order of Odd Fel- 
lows and the Modern Woodmen of America, and he and his wife belong 
to the Methodist Episcopal church. 

In 1906 Mr. Wilson was united in marriage with Miss Ocie C. 
Good, a daughter of Simon and Lula (Allen) Good, a sketch of whom 
appears on another page of this volume. Mr. and Mrs. Wilson have 
one child, their daughter Hazel. Their farm is a monument of their 
enterprise and thrift. Their upright lives are creditable to the citi- 



694 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

zenship of Linn county, and the universal esteem in which they are 
held is not only a proof of their merit but also of the ex,cellence of the 
people around them, who know how to appreciate genuine worth. 



JAMES A. NEAL 

(Deceased) 

One of the names which sparkle with undimming luster all 
through the early chronicles of Linn county is that of Neal, and it 
was the patronymic of members of the family to which the pleasing 
subject of this brief record belongs. They were early arrivals in the 
county, John M. Neal locating in what is now Clay township in 1836, 
and other members of the family coming either with him or soon after 
his arrival. They were men of mold and became prominent and influ- 
ential in the civil affairs of the county in their day, leaving their 
impress on the life of this region in indelible characters, all of which 
are entirely to their credit. 

James A. Neal w^as himself an early settler in the county, locating 
within its limits in 1841, and on the Clay township farm on which he 
passed the remainder of his long and useful life in 1842. He was born 
at Georgetown, Scott county, Kentucky, on June 8, 1811, and died on 
his farm in this county in 1898, at the advanced age of eighty-seven, and 
after a residence of fifty-seven years in Linn county. His parents were 
Presley and Frances (Mackintosh) Neal, the former a native of Vir- 
ginia and the latter of Pennsylvania. The father moved to Kentucky 
late in the eighteenth century, and there the mother died. The father 
continued to farm in that state until the burden of years rendered him 
incapable of further active labor. He then came to this county to live 
with his son James, and on the farm of the latter he died in 1868. 

His father, Daniel Neal, the grandfather of James, was a Kevolu- 
tionary soldier and served throughout the war for American independ- 
ence. He was conspicuous in the battle of Brandywine, near Philadel- 
phia, in September, 1777, in which the gallant La Fayette was seriously 
wounded. A spectacle case made by this Eevolutionary patriot is still 
in the possession of the family, and kept as one of its most cherished 
heirlooms. The father of James A. Neal was married three times, and 
his offspring numbered seven, four sons and three daughters, all now 
deceased. 

James A. Neal attained his manhood in his native state. In 1833 
he came on horseback to Howard county, Missouri, but he soon after- 



HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY ^ 695 

ward returned to Kentucky. In 1836 he came again to this state and 
took up his residence in Kansas City, where he remained until 1839^ 
working on the Shawnee Indian Mission, where Indians were instructed 
during the thirties. After passing about two years more in Kentucky 
he came a third time to Missouri, arriving in Linn county in 1841 with 
the intention of remaining. 

The next year he took up a tract of wild land from the govern- 
ment and to the improvement of this he devoted the rest of his life. 
He cleared and broke up his land, and by continuous and wisely applied 
industry made his farm one of the most productive and valuable of its 
size in the county. He lived to see the region he entered when it was 
a wilderness, with only a log cabin here and there, and all its possibili- 
ties as yet undeveloped, or nearly so, well populated, highly improved 
and far advanced on a career of vast progress and usefulness. Before 
he departed this life he saw the erstwhile unpruned and untamed 
growth of centuries replaced by the golden harvests of systematic in- 
dustry, the once unbroken expanse of woods and prairie made over inta 
rich and fruitful farms, all the products of civilization expanding their 
benefits around him, and the whole region the home of an enterprising^ 
ambitious, self-reliant and patriotic people. And it is greatly to his 
credit that he did his full share toward bringing about the vast and 
highly gratifying change of conditions. 

Mr. Neal was married in Linn county in 1842 to Miss Elizabeth 
Eussell, a daughter of Thomas and Sophia (Mullins) Eussell, early 
Linn county pioneers. Mrs. Neal survived her husband four years, 
her life having ended in 1902. Their offspring numbered fourteen, 
and eleven of them are living : Sarah, Presley, Clinton, Clayton, Mary, 
Martha, La Fayette, James, Joseph, Sophia and William. Sarah is 
the wife of George W. Myers, of Peoria, 111., and Sophia, widow of John 
W. Humphfres, who resides in Meadville, Nebraska. 

In the public affairs of the county Mr. Neal always took an active 
part during his years of vigor and energy. He served as sheriff from 
1865 to 1869, and during the Civil War was in the state militia takings 
part in all it had to do in the troublous and turbulent years of the great 
strife between the sections of our then torn and bleeding country. For 
a long time he and his wife were among the most attentive, serviceable 
and devout members of the Methodist Episcopal church, and fraternally 
he was connected with the Order of Odd Fellows for more than half a 
century. He fell into his long sleep in the fullness of years and after 
having enjoyed for nearly three score the unstinted esteem and, during 



696 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

the closing period of his life, the veneration of all the people of the 
county. 



STEPHEN F. BASKETT 

Among the advanced, progressive and studious farmers of Linn 
county Stephen F. Baskett holds a high rank, being regarded, not only 
in his own township of Clay, but throughout the county as one of the 
leading men in his business. He began farming on his own account at 
the age of twenty-one, and has been engaged in this occupation ever 
since. He has therefore had long experience in the business, and he 
has, in addition, made a study of it and kept in touch with its advance- 
ment in every way. 

Mr. Baskett is a native of Sullivan county, Missouri, and was born 
near Fields' mill on November 28, 1867. His parents, George P. and 
Mary E. (Fields) Baskett, were also born in Missouri, the former in 
Sullivan county and the latter in Linn county. The father's life began 
in 1845. He was educated there, and in 1862, when he was but seven- 
teen years of age, enlisted in defense of the Union in Company A, 
Twenty-third Missouri Volunteer Infantry. The regiment was soon in 
the midst of hostilities and was kept in active field service to the end 
of the war. Mr. Baskett took part in the battle of Shiloh and many 
other important engagements. 

After the close of the war he returned home and changed his resi- 
dence to Linn county a few years later. He died here on March 19, 
1888. The mother is still living. Of the ten children born to them 
seven are living, and all of them are residents of Linn county. The 
father served as township clerk and in other local offices. He was a 
member of the Methodist Episcopal church. He was a man of promi- 
nence and influence in his township, and was regarded as one of its 
most estimable citizens. 

The grandfather, Stephen J. Baskett, came to Missouri from Ken- 
tucky when he was a young man and located in Sullivan county. He 
was a merchant and farmer. Late in life he came to Linn .county, and 
here he died well advanced in years. He was thrice married, his first 
wife being a Miss Slaughter, who was a native of Howard county, this 
state. They became the parents of two sons and four daughters. 

Stephen F. Baskett was brought by his parents to Linn county at 
an early age. He grew to manhood here and was educated in the dis- 
trict schools. At the age of twenty-one he started his life work as a 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 697 

farmer, and he has never had or sought any other occupation. This has 
been entirely to his taste, and he has so conducted his operations in 
it that he has made it very profitable in a pecuniary way, and secured 
for himself a high and widespread reputation for his capacity and skill 
as a farmer. 

On February 21, 1892, Mr. Baskett was united in marriage with 
Miss Martha E. Smith, a daughter of Daniel Smith, who was born in 
Ohio and became a resident of Linn county in 1876. No children have 
been born of the union. Mr. Baskett takes an active interest in the 
public affairs of his township and county. He has served as township 
collector, and in other ways has rendered the locality of his home excel- 
lent and valued service. He is always zealous and energetic in promot- 
ing the progress of this part of the state, and his zeal and energy are 
at all times guided by intelligence and inspired by an earnest desire for 
the lasting good and general welfare of the community. Fraternally 
he is a member of the Order of Odd Fellows, and his wife belongs to 
the Methodist Episcopal church, which he also attends. They both 
take an active part in church work. Mr. Baskett has ever been a great 
lover of music, and for a number of years taught vocal music at nights 
in connection with his farm work, and still takes an active part in drill- 
ing voices for special work. He is also warm and practical in the sup- 
port of his fraternity. Every interest of the county has his ardent 
aid, and no duty of citizenship is too burdensome for his faithful per- 
formance of it, or too small for his attention. He is one of the most 
representative men in his township. 



SETH GRIFFETH 



Made an orphan at the age of three years by the death of hia 
father, and consequently thrown on his own resources at an early age, 
Seth Griffeth, one of the best known and most prosperous farmers in 
Clay township, this county, has made an excellent record and proved 
that he contained in his make-up the elements of self-reliance and re- 
sourcefulness which fitted him for any emergency and enabled him to 
command circumstances to his purposes and make them minister to 
his advancement. 

Mr. Griffeth is a native of Missouri, born in Sullivan county on 
October 19, 1861. His parents, Wesley and Sarah (Wilsey) Griffeth, 
were born and reared in Pike county, Illinois. The father was a farmer 



698 HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 

and followed his chosen occupation in his native state until about 1857, 
when he moved to this state and took up his residence on a tract of 
unbroken prairie land in Sullivan county. He improved this property 
and made a good farm of it, living on it until his death, in 1864. The 
farm is fourteen miles west of Milan, and is now one of the most de- 
sirable in that part of the county. During the Civil War the father 
served in the state militia in this state. The mother is still living and 
has her home now at Parsons, Kansas, where she has been living a 
number of years. 

They were the parents of two sons and three daughters. Two of 
the daughters have died. The father was a hunter of considerable local 
celebrity. Game was plentiful in Sullivan county when he located there, 
and he was very successful and skillful in securing hosts of tributes to 
his alertness in the chase, especially deer and wild turkeys. His wife 
was a devoted member of the Christian church and took a cordial and 
helpful interest in the welfare of the congregation to which she be- 
longed. 

His son Seth grew to manhood in Pike county, Hlinois, and obtained 
his education there. In 1880 he returned to Missouri, and during the 
next sixteen years lived on the old homestead in Sullivan county. In 
1896 he moved to Linn county and has lived ever since on the farm in 
Clay township which he now owns and cultivates, and which he has 
brought to a high degree of improvement and productiveness. He is 
a capable and wideawake farmer, studies his land and its needs and 
keeps in touch with the advances in the science of agriculture, and he 
makes his farming pay him good returns for the labor and care be- 
stowed upon it, 

Mr. Griff eth was married in Sullivan county in 1888 to Miss Mary 
Walker, a daughter of Frank and Jane (Hoover) Walker, the former a 
native of Kentucky and the latter of Pennsylvania. Mr. Walker located 
in Sullivan county in 1841, taking up a tract of government land on 
which he passed the rest of his life. Mr. and Mrs. Griff eth have had 
five children, three of whom are living: William G., I. Trussell and 
Arthur F. Their mother had two children by a former marriage : Jane 
E. Clevenger and Edith M., the latter being now the wife of Eberly 
Dennis, of Linn county. All the members of the family belong to the 
Cumberland Presbyterian church. 

They are well and favorably known throughout the county and 
stand high in the regard of the people in every part of it. They have 
lived uprightly, taken a serviceable interest in every public need of 



HISTOEY OF LIXN COUNTY 699 

their township and county, performed all the duties of good citizenship 
with fidelity, and given excellent examples of manhood and womanhood 
to the people living around them, in every way. Among the sterling 
and sturdy residents of Clay township they are in the first rank, and no 
family in the locality of their home is held in higher esteem, and none 
deserves to be. 



ORSA A. POTTER 



For a number of years a prosperous farmer of the rich prairie soil 
of central Illinois, and since 1904 engaged in tilling that of a fine farm 
of 240 acres in Jefferson township, this county, which is in many re- 
spects more desirable than almost anything his native state has to offer 
in the same line, Orsa A. Potter has devoted all his time and energies 
from his youth to the vocation of the old patriarchs of sacred history, 
and has foimd it both pleasing in pursuit and profitable in results. 

Mr. Potter was born in Shelby county, Illinois, on February 10, 
1870, a son of William and Sarah (Barrett) Potter, the former a native 
of Ohio and the latter of Pennsylvania. The family name was orig- 
inally Potterf , and the early members of the family in this country made 
honorable records in colonial and Revolutionary history under that 
name. Mr. Potter's parents were farmers. The father journeyed on 
horseback from his Ohio home to Shelby county, Illinois, in 1850, 
and there broke up a tract of wild prairie, which, by industry and good 
management, he transformed into a valuable and productive farm. He 
then repeated this performance on another tract, and after such and 
other signal service to the region laid down his trust, dying in 1899. 
The mother survived him seven years, passing away in 1906. The 
father was a Republican in political faith and always effectively service- 
able to his party. 

His father, Samuel Potterf, was a son of Jasper Potterf, a soldier 
in the Revolutionary War, who defended the cause of the American 
colonies through its successions of brightness and gloom from the 
time when the war began until the surrender of Cornwallis at York- 
town, Virginia, at which he was present, and which he helped to bring 
about. He was a sharp shooter in the service, and many a haughty 
British officer was forced to bite the dust in obedience to a summons 
from his unerring rifle. After the war he settled in Ohio, and there he 
passed the remainder of his days. 

Orsa A. Potter was reared on his father's farm in Illinois and 



700 HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 

obtained his education in the country schools in the neighborhood of 
its location. After leaving school he farmed in the same county on 
his own account until 1904, when he came to Missouri and Linn county 
and bought the farm of 240 acres which he now owns, occupies and 
cultivates in Jefferson township. He has his land all brought to an 
advanced state of productiveness and the farm well improved with 
good buildings. He studies his business and keeps in touch with the 
latest discoveries and methods in farming, and is known far and wide 
as one of the enterprising, progressive and successful farmers of this 
part of northern Missouri. 

He carries on general farming operations as extensively as the 
size of his farm will permit, and in addition conducts a flourishing and 
expanding business in breeding Hereford cattle and Percheron horses. 
By this industry he has done a great deal to improve the live stock in 
his township and county, and thereby been of considerable service to 
the people around him. He has also made the business profitable to 
himself by giving every detail of its management the most careful and 
studious attention, thereby winning for himself and his output a high 
and widespread reputation, he being everywhere considered a careful, 
judicious and reliable breeder of high grade live stock. 

Mr. Potter was married on September 14, 1892, to Miss Alfaretta 
Pogue, a native of Shelby county, Illinois, and a daughter of Hiram 
and Rachel (Hunt) Pogue (Rachel Hunt's parents were Quakers of 
Indiana), early settlers in that county and both now deceased. Mr. 
and Mrs. Potter have one child, their son Loren W., who still abides 
with them under the parental rooftree, and assists his father in the 
work of the farm and the stock breeding industry. 

Mr. Potter is a firm and faithful Republican in political relations, 
and at all times zealously loyal and serviceable to his party, although 
he has no desire for anything it has to bestow in the way of public 
office. His farming and his live stock industry occupy his time and 
attention, except what is necessary for social requirements and the 
duties of citizenship, and he prefers to leave the administration of 
public affairs to those who have a taste and desire for it. Fraternally 
he is connected with the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, and in 
religious affiliation belongs to the Methodist church in Laclede. He 
is an excellent farmer, a wise and successful stock breeder, a sterling 
and progressive citizen and an upright and straightforward man, and 
the residents of Linn county esteem him in every locality in accordance 
with this estimate. 



HISTOEY OF LIN^^ COUNTY 701 

JOHN W. LOCKHART 

Prominent as one of the leading farmers of Clay township in this 
county, held in high esteem as a capable and successful school teacher 
for many years, and revered for his religious services as a local 
preacher, John W. Lockhart is altogether worthy of the rank he holds 
in the estimation of the people, as is shown by his success and achieve- 
ments in his several vocations, his high character and his faithful per- 
formance of all the duties of citizenship in behalf of his township and 
county. 

Mr. Lockhart, although not * ' native here, and to the manor born, ' ' 
his life having begun in Henry county, Illinois, on April 10, 1864, is as 
warmly interested in the progress and development of Linn county as 
if he were a son of its soil. In fact, he has drawn his stature and his 
strength from that soil, for he has lived in Clay township from the 
time when he was four years old, and scarcely remembers any other 
home. He is a son of John W. and Elizabeth (Hull) Lockhart, natives 
of Virginia, the father born in Rappahannock county on June 13, 1818, 
and the mother in the same county on June 18, 1835. 

The father was a wagon maker and a first rate workman at the 
craft. In the fifties, sometime, he moved his family to Henry county, 
Illinois, where he farmed and did repair work at his trade until 1868, 
when he came to Missouri and located in Linn county. He bought a 
tract of wdld land in Clay township which he cleared and improved, 
making it over into a first rate farm on which he lived many years. He 
died at Breckenridge, Caldwell county, this state in 1903, and the mother 
passed away in Linneus in 1884. They had two children, one of whom 
has died. 

Mr. Lockhart 's grandfather, Willis Lockhart, was also a Virginian, 
and his great-grandfather was a soldier in the war of the Revolution. 
They were prosperous planters in Virginia, and of Scotch ancestry. 
The mother's family originated in England, and the progenitors of the 
American branch of it also came to this country and settled in the *'01d 
Dominion" in colonial times. The members of both houses took part 
in the affairs of the commonwealth in various ways in the earlier days, 
helped to lay its foundations and rear the superstructure of its colonial 
greatness and aided in the development of its later progress as a state. 

Mr. Lockhart was but four years old when the family moved to 
Linn county, and he grew to manhood here and obtained his education 
in the district schools of Clay township and at Avalon College. After 
completing his education he taught school in Linn and Ray counties for 



703 HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 

a period of twelve years, being engaged in farming at the same time and 
ever since. He has also long been prominent in the councils of the 
Methodist Episcopal church, as his parents were, and has rendered local 
congregations excellent service for many years as a preacher in time of 
need. In public affairs he has taken an active and serviceable part, and 
has shown capacity of an unusual order for them in service as township 
trustee. 

_0n August 31, 1886, Mr. Lockhart was married in this county to 
Miss Emma B. Cuberly, a daughter of William Cuberly of Ohio, an 
early settler in Linn county. Seven children were born of the union, 
all of whom are living: Myrtle, who is now the wife of E. E. Gibson, 
and Irving, Victor, Harry, Mary, Pauline and Frank. Their mother 
died on October 4, 1910, and in 1911 the father married a second time, 
uniting himself with Miss Anna Grice, a native of West Virginia, who 
is, like himself, well esteemed in all parts of the township and elsewhere 
where she is known. 



WELLS D. BROWN 

(Deceased) 

The late Wells D. Brown, of Marceline, where he was one of the 
leading business men of the city for more than twenty years, had a 
very interesting and successful business career. His activity and 
alertness for opportunities led him to many places in several different 
states, and gave plenty of spice and variety to his operations. But 
wherever he lived and in all that he did he always commanded the 
high regard and esteem of the people around him, and was an orna- 
ment and a great benefit to every community in which he lived, being 
a man of great public spirit and energy and effectiveness in behalf of 
the general welfare of his locality. 

Mr. Brown was born on November 2, 1852, in the village of 
Ontario, Wayne county. New York, where he was reared to the age of 
eleven years and began his education. In 1863 he became a resident 
of Coldwater, Michigan, and in 1877 located in Monroe county, Mis- 
souri. There he began his business record and was married on Janu- 
ary 9, 1879, to Miss Martha Jane Wood, the daughter of Caleb and 
Sarah Wood, who came to this state from Bourbon county, Kentucky, 
and were among the very first settlers of Monroe county, Missouri. 

Four children were born of this union: Charles Burton, whose life 
began on April 23, 1881, died in infancy; Fred Wood, whose time of 
birth was April 13, 1883; Sarah Estella died, who came into being on 



HISTORY OF LINX COUNTY 703 

September 12, 1886, and Frances 0., who was born on February 25, 
1890. Two of the children are living, and in their several locations 
and stations in life are exemplifying the excellent traits of character 
for which their parents were everj^where distinguished. 

In 1882 the parents moved with what family they then had to Chi- 
cago, where they remained two years, then returned to Missouri, taking 
up their residence at Clarence, Shelby county. In 1888 the family 
moved to Marceline, and in 1890 the father started the leading lumber 
business in that city, which he conducted with great success and excel- 
lent results until his death. This occurred on May 25, 1911, at the 
comparatively early age of fifty-seven years and seven months, and 
removed from the activities of the town and county one of their best 
merchants and most enterprising and progressive citizens, as well as 
one of the most serviceable. 

Mr. Brown took a very active, intelligent and helpful interest in 
everything pertaining to the locality of his home, and could always be 
counted on to give strong support to whatever made for its further 
development and improvement or ministered to the welfare of its resi- 
dents. No duty of citizenship was too small for his attention or too 
large for him to undertake and successfully perform. The people of 
Marceline esteemed him highly for his excellent character, his strong 
sense of fidelity, his uprightness in all his transactions and his general 
worth and usefulness as a man. 



WILLIAM B. McGregor 

Bearing the name of a warlike clan distinguished in Scottish his- 
tory, and a scion of families prominent in its deeds of valor, William 
B. McGregor, although a native of Linn county, Missouri, and now a 
resident of Locust Creek township, has had his interest in the chroni- 
cles of his ancestors quickened by breathing in the fragrance of their 
native heather and mingling freely with their other descendants 
through narratives of their doings given him by his father, who 
acquired a knowledge of them during his two long residences in 
Scotland. 

He was born on a farm about two miles south of St. Catharine in 
this county, on January 29, 1876, and is a son of Duncan and Rachel 
Ellen (Dick) (Young) McGregor, the former of whom was bom in 
Prince Edward's Island, Nova Scotia, in 1832, and the latter in Ohio 
in 1841. When the father was only one year old he was taken to 



704 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

Scotland, where he remained until he was twenty-one. He then 
returned to the United States, and located for some years in Pennsyl- 
vania, afterward removing to Missouri and finding a new home at 
Dry Hill, near St. Louis. He remained here engaged in mining 
until 1860, then went back to Scotland for another residence of about 
five years. At the end of that period he once more came to Linn 
county, and here he passed the remainder of his days. 

He was married on March 4, 1875, and being a man of very pro- 
gressive ideas, he and his wife took an earnest interest and active 
part in everything pertaining to the development and improvement 
of the township and county of their residence. They were especially 
zealous in the work of the Methodist Episcopal church, the father 
being one of the trustees who built the Seely chapel. But they were 
ready and energetic in all other worthy projects undertaken by the 
congregation to which they belonged, and were accounted among its 
most valuable and useful members. 

Their son William was reared in Linn county and obtained the 
greater part of his education in its schools. He attended a common 
school to the end of its course of instruction, then the high school at 
Marceline, and afterward the college in Brookfield. After leaving the 
institution last named he secured special training and preparation for 
the profession of teaching at the Kirksville State Normal School. He 
began teaching in 1897, when he was twenty-one years of age, and 
taught three years in country schools and ten as principal of the 
schools in Brookfield. 

His extended services in this line of useful endeavor commended 
him to the people of the county as a capable, intelligent and upright 
man, and in November, 1910, they showed their appreciation of his 
worth and his fitness for administrative duties by electing him county 
recorder by a majority of 300 votes, as the nominee of the Democratic 
party, to which he has belonged from the dawn of his manhood, and in 
whose service he has ever been zealous and effective, although not, at 
any time, allowing partisan considerations to influence his work as a 
school teacher, or in reference to any general interest of the people. 

On December 24, 1900, Mr. McGregor was married to Miss Ida 
Rose Burch, a daughter of D. D. and Stella (Pancost) Burch, a sketch 
of whom will be found in this work. Of the children born of the 
union four are living, Randolph Ryvers, Muriel Hope, Alberta Mar- 
guerite and Rubert William. The father is a devoted and serviceable 
member of the First Methodist Episcopal Church of Brookfield. He 
also belongs to the Order of Odd Fellows, the Modern Woodmen of 




%f 




S. MILTON ROBINSON 



HISTORY OF IJNN COUNTY 705 

America, the Woodmen of the Worid, the National Annuity, the 
Brotherhood of American Yoemen and the A. F. & A. M., and takes an 
active part in the proceedings of them all. 



S. MILTON ROBINSON 

Having passed forty-five of the seventy years of his life in this 
county, mingling freely with its people, taking an active part in all 
worthy projects for its advancement and improvement, and perform- 
ing with intelligence and fidelity all the duties of citizenship, S. Milton 
Robinson, of Brookfield township, is one of the best known and most 
highly esteemed farmers in the county. He is a leader, too, in his line 
of employment, his fine farm of 360 acres being a model of fruitful- 
ness and high cultivation, and his live stock business being a source of 
considerable addition to the commerce and mercantile influence of his 
township. 

Mr, Robinson was born in Belmont county, Ohio, on April 7, 1840. 
His parents were Thomas and Martha (Kerr) Robinson, the former a 
native of Ohio and the latter of Virginia. The father was a farmer, 
and passed the whole of his life in Belmont county, Ohio, where he 
died in 1854. The mother survived him many years and died in this 
county. They had six children, five of whom are living, two of the 
sons being residents of Linn county, Milton and his brother James W. 

The paternal grandfather, Samuel Robinson, was born and reared 
in Ohio, and died in that state. He was a soldier in the War of 1812, 
but in times of peace was throughout his life a farmer. The Robinson 
family is of Scotch origin, the great grandfather of Milton having 
come to the United States from Scotland before the Revolutionary 
war. He located for a time in Maryland, but when the voice of the 
vast rich region beyond the Alleghanies from his early American 
home began to attract the farther East, he joined the tide of emigra- 
tion westward and took up his residence in Ohio, where he passed the 
remainder of his days and reared a family. 

S. Milton Robinson grew to manhood and obtained his education 
in his native county. He lived with his parents on the farm and 
assisted in cultivating it until toward the close of the Civil War, when 
he enlisted in Company K, Fifty-first Ohio Infantry, and was thus 
enabled to be in at the dying agonies of the Southern Confederacy. 
He did not, however, reach that stage of the momentous conflict with- 
out participating in some of the hardest and bloodiest fighting of the 
war. He was on the fateful field of Nashville, where every inch of 



7Q6 HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 

ground was hotly contested by each army, and went through the 
deluge of death at Franklin, Tennessee, besides taking part in several 
other engagements of moment. 

In 1866 he came to Missouri and settled on the farm which is still 
his home. He was obliged to clear his land, break it up and literally 
hew his farm out of the wilderness. He has added to his first holding 
by subsequent purchases until he now owns 360 acres of as fine land as 
can be found in the county in its natural richness, and its value has 
been vastly augmented by the improvements he has put on it and the 
high state of development and productiveness to which he has brought 
it. 

Mr. Robinson has farmed his land with great industry and skill, 
and so applied his efforts that every week of his labor on it has been 
made to tell to his advantage. During the last forty-five years he has 
filso conducted a profitable and progressive live stock business, making 
a specialty of shorthorn cattle, of which he has fed and shipped one or 
two carloads every year to the eastern markets. His number has 
never fallen below one carload and seldom gone above two, he having 
been more concerned about supplying quality to the markets than 
numbers. He has also raised fifty-eight crops of grain, and general 
farm produce in proportion. 

Mr. Robinson was married in 1902 to Mrs. Alice (King) Fruin, a 
native of Sanilac county, Michigan. He is a Republican in politics, 
loyal to his party and energetic and effective in its service, and a 
Presbyterian in church allegiance. He has served the congregation to 
which he belongs as moderator for a continuous period of thirty-five 
years, and his services in that capacity have been of great benefit to 
the church and are held in high appreciation by its members. A model 
farmer, an excellent citizen, a progressive live stock man, a faithful 
servant of his church, and deeply and practically interested in the 
welfare of his township and county, it is not surprising that he is held 
in high esteem by the people all around him, and is estimated at his 
real worth, for his life has been an open book before them with no 
stain on any of its pages. 



EVAN S. THARP 

(Deceased) 

What is now Linn county was practically almost all a wilderness 
when Evan S. Tharp, late of Clay township, took up his residence 
within its present borders. But he was not ignorant of the conditions 



HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 707 

which faced him on becoming one of its early pioneers in 1844. For 
he had made a previous trip to this region from his home in Kentucky 
on horseback and carefully looked over the ground before deciding 
to locate here. He knew when he came that for years his residence 
must be on the frontier and subject to the privations, hardships, ardu- 
ous toil and constant dangers involved in such a situation. And it is 
greatly to his credit that he confronted all the conditions with stead- 
fast courage and endured whatever they brought with resolute forti- 
tude. It is also a tribute to the sturdy and sterling character of his 
manhood that he triumphed over his difficulties and won a substantial 
success in his new home. 

Mr. Tharp was born in Marion county, Kentucky, on August 11, 
1820, and was a son of John and Chinese Tharp, who died in the Blue 
Grass State after creditable records of usefulness extended over many 
years of steady industry and fidelity to duty. They were frontier 
residents also, for what Linn county, Missouri, was when he settled 
in it, Marion county, Kentucky, was in their day. Their son Evan 
was therefore inured to the requirements of pioneer life when he came 
to this county, and by that very fact was a valuable addition to its 
early population and a forceful factor in its early history. 

He grew to manhood in his native state and for a number of years 
after leaving school followed farming there. But the West had a per- 
suasive voice for him, and so, as has been noted, he made a trip to 
northern Missouri on horseback, which was an undertaking of magni- 
tude in those days. His purpose was to see for himself what promise 
of advancement in a worldly way this region might show. He was 
pleased with the outlook, and in 1844 came again, bringing his family 
with him with the design of making his home here for the remainder 
of his days. 

He took up a tract of 120 acres of government land in Clay town- 
ship, built a log cabin on it in the crude fashion of the time, with a 
chimney constructed of sticks and mud and other features in keeping, 
and began to clear and cultivate his land. It was all timber when he 
took possession of it, but it did not remain so long. He worked with 
industry and perseverance, and soon the forest depths, which for ages 
had echoed only the terrifying sounds of wild beasts and birds of 
prey, began to resound with the more agreeable notes of the wood- 
man's ax and their loud consequent as the wood monarchs, rank after 
rank, came crashing to the earth. 

He cleared his land, developed it into a good farm and lived on it 
until his death, which occurred in 1893. It is the farm on which his 



708 HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 

widow is still living. She also was a native of Kentucky, bom in 1826, 
and they were married in that state. Her maiden name was Josephine 
F. Conder. They became the parents of eleven children, ten of whom 
are living: John H., Martha A., James H., Margaretta E., Eobert L., 
Cassie A., William W., Richard A., Mary C. and Sarah E., twins. 
During the Civil War the father served in the Missouri state militia. 
His church connection was with the Baptist sect and fraternally he 
belonged to the Order of Odd Fellows. In his young manhood all the 
people esteemed him for his strong character, sterling manhood and 
useful citizenship; and in his later years they revered him for what 
he had done for the improvement and development of his township and 
all the other services of his citizenship. 



SAMUEL SHOUP 



Having been a resident of Linn county for forty-four years, Sam- 
uel Shoup, one of the prominent and successful farmers of Parson 
Creek township, is properly classed as a pioneer and is held in the 
highest esteem as such, and is respected by all classes of the county's 
population also on account of his high character, sterling worth and 
enterprising and progressive citizenship, which he has made service- 
able to his township and the county in general from his youth, or dur- 
ing the whole time of his residence here. 

Mr. Shoup was born in Delaware county, Indiana, on January 7, 
1853, and is a son of John and Frances (Shoup) Shoup, natives of Lan- 
caster county, Pennsylvania, where the mother was born in 1811 and 
the father in 1812. The father was a farmer and moved from his 
native state to Indiana about 1830. He secured a farm in Delaware 
county on a lease and remained on it until 1866, clearing it for cultiva- 
tion and making a first rate farm of it. In the year last mentioned 
he moved his family to Henry county, Illinois, and in 1868 came from 
there to Linn county, Missouri, where the parents passed the remain- 
der of their lives. 

On his arrival in this county the father bought the farm on which 
he died in 1899, having survived the mother twenty years, her death 
having occurred in 1879. They were the parents of nine children, four 
sons and five daughters, all of whom have passed away but Samuel, 
his brother John and their sister, Mrs. Martha Cole, who resides in 
Illinois. One son, Martin, died in the Union army during the Civil 
War. He served in the Twenty-fifth Indiana Infantry. Their grand- 



HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 709 

father, John Shoup, was born in Pennsylvania and died on a farm 
he moved to in Indiana, a number of years prior to his demise, and 
which he cultivated with all his force until his end came, leaving a 
creditable record for industry, thrift and fidelity to duty in both states, 
and being highly respected wherever he was known in each. 

Samuel Shoup passed his early life in Indiana and Illinois, and 
was fifteen years old when his parents moved to this state and county. 
He began his education in the primitive schools, with their log houses 
and slab benches, in Indiana, continued it in similar temples of learn- 
ing in Illinois and completed it in schools of the same scope and equip- 
ment here. He remained at home with his father and assisted him 
in the work on the farm until the death of the latter, and then cared 
for and farmed the homestead ten years longer for the benefit of the 
family that was left. 

In 1909 he moved to the farm he now owns and lives on, and since 
then has devoted his attention exclusively to that. He is a skillful 
farmer and conducts his operations with both energy and intelligence, 
keeping abreast with the progress in agriculture and giving his town- 
ship a good example of up-to-date theories and methods and strong 
proof of their value. He is also zealous in his support of all public 
improvements and every undertaking designed to promote the general 
well being of the county. 

On January 16, 1889, Mr. Shoup was married to Miss Clara B. 
Cassidy, a daughter of George M. and Mary E. (Lee) Cassidy, who 
became residents of Linn county in 1871. The mother is still living, 
but the father died a number of years ago. Mr. and Mrs. Shoup have 
no children of their own, but are rearing an adopted son whose name 
is Robert C, and who is now 15 years old. Mr. Shoup belongs to the 
Modern Woodmen of America and Mrs. Shoup is a member of the 
Methodist Episcopal church. Their genuine worth and usefulness as 
citizens have given them a strong hold on the regard and good will 
of the people in all parts of the county. 



HOUSTON LUYSTER 

Although a native of Mercer county, Kentucky, where he was born 
on August 16, 1843, Houston Luyster, one of the prosperous and enter- 
prising farmers of Clay township, has lived in Linn county fifty-six 
years and has all the time been connected with its farming industry 
except for three years of the Civil War, during which he was in the 



710 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

Union army, fighting and doing detached duty in defense of the Union. 
He has been industrious and frugal, making every week of his time 
tell to his advantage, and by his energy and progressiveness has won 
a substantial competence for life from the ready and responsive soil 
on which he has worked. 

Mr. Luyster is a son of Abram and Nancy (Utley) Luyster, the 
former a native of Pennsylvania and the latter of Kentucky. The 
father was a farmer and came to Missouri in 1854, locating for two 
years in Cass county and at the end of that period changing his resi- 
dence to Linn county, and buying a tract of wild land one mile south 
of the farm which his son Houston now owns and cultivates. He 
cleared and improved his uncultivated domain, as it was when he took 
possession of it, and passed the remainder of his days on it, dying in 
1881. The mother died in 1888. 

They had five sons and five daughters, and of the ten children 
four of the sons and three of the daughters are living. The parents 
were leading members of the Presbyterian ,church, and faithful in 
their duties toward it. The grandfather, John Luyster, came to this 
country in company with his two brothers. He lived for a time in the 
state of New Y'ork, then moved to Kentucky, where he died well 
advanced in years. 

Houston Luyster was eleven years of age when his parents 
brought him to Missouri and thirteen when the family moved to Linn 
county. He obtained his education in the primitive schools of his boy- 
hood and youth, which were housed in crude log structures and very 
limited in their range of instruction and facilities. He remained at 
home with his parents until 1862, when he enlisted in Company H, 
Second Provisional cavalry regiment, went out of that into Company 
A, Forty-second Missouri volunteer infantry, for a term of three years. 
His term of enlistment took him through the bloody and disastrous 
conflict, but as he was on detached duty most of the time he did not 
see a great deal of field service. He took part, however, in the battle 
of Bald Knob, Tennessee, in addition to a number of minor 
engagements. 

After the war Mr. Luyster returned to Linn county and bought the 
farm in Clay township which he has ever since occupied, and which 
he has greatly improved in appearance and condition, adding a great 
deal to its attractiveness and value, and raising it to a high standard 
of productiveness. No effort has been omitted on his part to make his 
farm a first rate one, and, as he has given it close study and the most 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 711 

careful attention, his purpose has been achieved with entire and grati- 
fying success. 

On the 31st of August, 1873, Mr. Luyster was united in marriage 
with Miss Margaret Tharp, a daughter of Allen and Emeline Tharp. 
Three children have been born of the union, all of whom are living. 
They are: James W., a Linn county farmer; Estella M., who is the wife 
of W. P. Brinkley; and Ethel, who married with Edward Stephenson 
and has her home at Brookfield, Missouri. The mother of these chil- 
dren died in 1907. The father is a leading member of the Methodist 
Episcopal church. He has always shown a warm and helpful interest 
in the affairs of the township and county in which he lives, and is 
everywhere regarded as a highly useful, enterprising and serviceable 
citizen, and is universally esteemed as such. 



CHRISTIAN HARTER 

The son of a pioneer of Missouri and himself an early arrival in 
the state, coming to Caldwell county with his parents when he was but 
two years old and to Linn county when he was twenty-two, Christian 
Harter of Clay township, where he has for over half a century been 
engaged in farming and helping to build up and develop the county, 
has lived long and creditably among this people, and now in his declin- 
ing years there is not one that does not do him reverence for his genu- 
ine worth and his extended and valuable services to this region and 
its residents. 

Mr. Harter was born in Richland county, Ohio, on April 6, 1837, 
and is a son of Christian and Catherine (Crouse) Harter, the former 
a native of Virginia and the latter of Pennsylvania. The father was 
born in 1805. He grew to manhood in Virginia and operated Harper's 
Ferry over the Potomac river for a number of years. At an early day 
in the history of Ohio he moved to that state, making the trip with 
teams, literally through the wilderness. He secured a tract of timber 
land which he cleared; then, in 1839, again took up his course west- 
ward, coming to Missouri and locating in Caldwell county. There he 
bought a half-section of wild land, on which he lived and labored ten 
years, being accidentally killed in 1849 by the overturning of his 
sleigh. The mother died one year later. 

Their offspring numbered eight, six sons and two daughters. Two 
of the sons and one of the daughters are living. The father was a 
great hunter of deer, and the old rifle with which he did such excellent 



712 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

execution is still in the possession of his son Christian. But his rifle 
was not used only for hunting wild game. He used it with effect in 
the Mormon war waged in Caldwell and Daviess counties, and Indians, 
too, if they were hostile and disturbed the whites, sometimes fell 
before his deadly aim, as there was at times no temporizing with them, 
and the general safety demanded that swift and summary punish- 
ment be meted out to the irreconcilables. 

Christian Harter of this sketch was but two years old when his 
parents brought him to Missouri. He was reared in Caldwell county 
to the age of twenty-two and obtained what education he was able to 
secure in the humble and limited country schools near his home. They 
were kept in log cabins, furnished with slab benches and the rest of 
their equipment was in keeping with their shelter and furnishings. 
But Mr. Harter had no other educational facilities, for the shadow of 
death darkened his boj'^hood, his father being killed when the son was 
but twelve years old and the mother dying when he was but thirteen. 

In 1861 he moved to Linn county and bought a tract of wholly 
unimproved and uncultivated land. On this he put up a small log 
dwelling and began the arduous work of breaking up his land and 
getting it under cultivation. In 1862 he joined the provisional militia 
of the state under Colonel De Graw, and in this organization he served 
one hundred and nineteen days, but was engaged most of the time in 
guard duty. Since the war he has been continuously engaged in farm- 
ing on what was once an unbroken expanse of wilderness but which he 
has transformed into an excellent farm. 

Mr. Harter was married on May 15, 1859, to Miss Mary C. Tolson, 
a daughter of Benjamin and Catherine (Tyre) Tolson. Her father 
was a soldier in the Mexican War, enlisting at Linneus, and died in 
the service. Mr. and Mrs. Harter have eight children: John W.; 
Eliza J., the widow of the late John Taylor; George Edward, a sketch 
of whom follows this account of his father's life; Mary E., who is the 
wife of R. S. Eandall; Julia I., who is the wife of W. G. Randall; Flora 
M.; Rosa L.; and Nettie C, who is the wife of E. L. Pittman. All the 
members of the family belong to the Methodist Episcopal church. The 
father is one of the oldest and most revered members of that fast-fad- 
ing band of hardy pioneers who laid the foundations of civilization in 
this part of the state of Missouri. He is well known throughout the 
county and is highly esteemed by all classes of its citizens, as he is in 
other parts of the state where he is known. 

George E, Harter, a son of Christian and Mary C. (Tolson) Harter, 
was born in Linn county on August 8, 1868. He was reared and edu- 



HISTORY OF LINX COUNTY US 

cated here and has farmed and taught school in the county for four- 
teen years, and has been successful in both occupations, being highly 
regarded as a farmer and held in general esteem as a progressive and 
capable teacher, industrious and enterprising in his work of all kinds 
and faithful in performing it at all times. 

On September 12, 1889, he was united in marriage with Miss Jen- 
nie Agin, a daughter of Lewis and Mary A. (Ballington) Agin, who 
became residents of Linn county about 1870. Mr. and Mrs. Harter 
had two children: Their son Joy H., who married Miss Elizabeth M. 
Frisbie of St. Louis, and their other son, Edward L., who is living at 
home with his father. The mother died on May 8, 1907. The father 
is a member of the Order of Odd Fellows and the Modern Woodmen of 
America in fraternal circles, and his religious connection is with the 
Methodist Episcopal church. 



NATHANIEL G. RANSOM 

. One of the most extensive and best known farmers in Linn county 
is Nathaniel G. Ransom who makes his home in Brookfield, and from 
that city as a base of operations superintends the cultivation of his 
farms and all that pertains to them. But his extensive farming opera- 
tions do not furnish his only title to notice and consideration. He is 
also one of the most enterprising, progressive and public-spirited citi- 
zens of the county, and in all parts of it he stands high in public esti- 
mation on this account, justifying his rank by his activity in behalf 
of every commendable undertaking for the improvement and further 
development of the locality in which his interests lie. 

Mr. Ransom is a native of Cayuga county. New York, where his 
life began on September 20, 1852. His father, whose name was also 
Nathaniel, was born in Vermont and his mother, whose maiden name 
was Hannah Wood, in Rhode Island. The father was a farmer and 
followed his chosen occupation in the state of New York until 1867, 
when he came to Missouri to live and bought 720 acres of land in Linn 
and Chariton counties, 400 acres of the tract having been somewhat 
cultivated and improved. He then moved his family here, and he lived 
on and farmed his land until the burden of years induced him to give 
up all active pursuits. He died in Linn county in 1898, at the age of 
ninety years. The mother died in 1888, aged seventy-five. They had 
f©ur sons, Benjamin and Nauaniel; also Joseph and Robert, deceased. 
The two last named died in New York. Benjamin died a number of 



714 HISTORY OF LIXX COUNT!' 

years ago and was a prominent farmer of this comity at the time of his 
death, leaving the subject of this brief memoir and his son, Nathaniel 
G., Jr., the only male rei)resentatives of the family living at this time 
(1912). 

The paternal grandfather, Robert Ransom, was a native of Ver- 
mont and a farmer in the state of New York, where he died at a good 
old age. The maternal grandfather, Henry Wood, was born at Bristol, 
Rhode Island, and became a sea captain. He began following the sea 
early and kept it up for a great many years, going to all parts of the 
world where commerce leads, and coming in contact with people of all 
climes and tongues. He lived to the age of ninety-six years. 

Nathaniel G. Ransom grew to the age of fourteen in his native 
state and then came with his parents to Linn county, Missouri, where 
he has ever since resided. After completing in the schools of this 
county the education he began in that of his nativity, he started in life 
for himself as a farmer. He has adhered to the vocation of his fore- 
fathers in spite of many temptations to engage in other business, and 
his success and the increasing magnitude of his operations prove the 
wisdom of his choice. He now owns 1,400 acres of land, all of good 
quality, and the greater part of it under cultivation. He is a vigorous 
and skillful farmer, and so manages his work that he makes every acre 
he has in tillage yield its full tribute of recompense for the care and 
labor bestowed upon it, and all his holdings keep pace with the prog- 
ress in agriculture. In addition he is a large stockholder in the Brown- 
lee Bank. 

Having such large and valuable interests in the county, it is inevi- 
table that Mr. Ransom should take an active part in its public affairs. 
Without regard to political claims or party needs, he is energetic and 
effective in helping to control them for the best interests of the people 
and the enduring welfare of the county and state. The only political 
ofifice he has held is that of membership in the board of aldermen in 
Brookfield, and he was chosen to this more by the activity of his 
friends and the progressive people of the community generally than 
through any effort or desire of his own. He gave the city good service 
in the office, and they have shown their appreciation of it. 

On January 22, 1883, Mr. Ransom was joined in wedlock with 
Miss Virginia Millar, a native of Pennsylvania. She is a daughter of 
Thomas and Olean F. Millar, who came from that state to Linn county 
about 1868. Three children, all living, have been born of the union: 
Rena M., Virginia M. and Nathaniel G., Jr., all of whom are still resi- 
dents of this county, and stand well in the regard of its people. 



HISTORY OF LINX COUX^TY 715 

The improvement and further development of the county of his 
home has always been an object of great solicitude to Mr. Ransom, 
and he has been earnest in his support of all good projects involving 
this result. Nothing that he deems of value to the region in which he 
lives goes without his effective and intelligent practical support, and 
he by no means always waits for other persons to take the initiative. 
He is active in the fraternal life of his community as a member of the 
Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks, and in social circles gener- 
ally he is a live force. With reference to the cause of public education 
he is one of the most earnest and potential men in the county, and in 
every way he is one of Linn county's best and most useful citizens. 



AID R. LEWIS 



Although his life has been the uneventful and necessarily some- 
what monotonous one of a plain and unpretentious farmer, with none 
of the spectacular features which give men opportunity to exhibit their 
showy qualities. Aid R. Lewis of Clay township has found in it oppor- 
tunity to demonstrate that he is a man of sturdy character, upright 
living and faithful to duty in every form of its calls upon him, and 
he has found enjoyment in his lot, laborious as it has been, and unre- 
lenting in its demands for service and attention at all times. This is 
one of the advantages of plain and simple living. "Contentment, like 
the primrose, blooms along the common, beaten track." 

Mr. Lewis is a native of Linn county, Missouri, born on October 
17, 1871. His parents, Benjamin F. and Phoebe (Henderson) Lewis, 
were natives of Ohio, the father born in Washington county in that 
state in 1828, and the mother in Huron county, in 1835. The father 
grew to manhood in his native state, and in 1842 moved to Illinois. He 
was in quest of a region as nearly to his taste as he could find, and from 
Illinois changed his residence to Minnesota. From there he moved to 
Kansas, and finally, in 1871, came to Missouri and Linn county. 

Here he and his wife passed the remainder of their lives, hers end- 
ing in 1884 and his on February 9, 1912. They were the parents of 
five sons and three daughters, and of the number four are living. The 
grandfather, Hezekiah Lewis, came to this country from England in 
1794, and became a resident of Washington county, Ohio, where he 
died in 1861. He was a farmer in his native land and also in this 
country, and a good one, as was his son and as is his grandson. 

Aid R. Lewis is wholly a product of this county. He grew to man- 



716 HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 

hood here, drew the bone and sinew of his frame from the local soil, 
obtained his education in the county schools, and has devoted all the 
years of his youth and manhood and all his energies to his part in the 
industries of the locality. And when the golden thread of sentiment 
began to run to a practical end in the fabric of his life, he was united 
in marriage with one of Linn county's desirable young ladies. 

While attending school he worked on his father's farm and for a 
time after completing his education also. When he started to fight the 
battle of life for himself he began as a farmer, and he has continued 
the struggle for advancement among men to the present time (1912) 
as a farmer, with the exception of four years passed in the employ 
of the Burlington Railroad. In 1903 Mr. Lewis left the farm for a 
time, and began the study of telegraphy under Mr. E. A. Corey, then 
agent in charge of the Linneus station. At the end of one year he 
was given the position of night operator at Memphis, Missouri, the 
duties of which position he discharged for a like period of time, when 
he was promoted to the position of agent and operator at Piano, Iowa, 
where he remained but a few months, when he received another promo- 
tion, and filled various positions of trust until 1907. He was then 
compelled to resign, on account of his wife's health, and returned to 
the farm with the hope that the change would result in great benefit to 
her. But in this he was disappointed as Mrs. Lewis j^assed away on 
March 7, 1912, at the University Hospital of Kansas City, where she 
had gone to undergo an operation which they both believed would 
restore her to her former good health. 

He has been successful in his undertakings and is now a man of 
comfortable worldly estate, and stands well in the estimation of his 
friends and neighbors and the people of the county generally. But it 
is to be noted that all the progress he has made has been through his 
own efforts, and all his achievements are the results of his own ability, 
industry and good management in every department of his business. 

On November 28, 1894, Mr. Lewis was united in marriage with 
Miss Cordie Phillips, a daughter of James L. Phillips, who became 
a resident of Linn county in 1845. Her mother's maiden name was 
Sarah Bowyer. Mr. and Mrs. Lewis have had five children, four of 
whom are living, and all still members of the parental family circle 
and adding to its attractiveness as well as assisting in the work on the 
farm and in the household. They are: Carroll D., Vashti R., Iva M. 
and Bertie P. The father is a member of the Order of Odd Fellows. 
He is widely and favorably known, and is everj^where highly esteemed. 



HTSTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 717 

JEREMIAH FRUIN 

(Deceased) 

"Was for a number of years an extensive landholder of Linn county, 
and also a leading contractor and builder in St. Louis. Jeremiah Fruin, 
of the firm of Fruin & Colnon of the Missouri metropolis, showed in 
several ways his capacity for great affairs and also for finding the 
way to them and conducting them to successful and most serviceable 
achievement. Undertakings whose magnitude would stagger even men 
of considerable ability and breadth of gauge, and would seem impossi- 
ble to smaller men, were matters of easy accomplishment with him, 
and under the magnetism of his masterly management moved forward 
to completion as smoothly as the planets in their orbits. 

He was practically retired from active pursuits, at the time of his 
death in March, 1912, but his past record is as given in the paragraph 
above. No difficulty ever daunted, no disaster ever dismayed him. If 
he found obstructions in his way he easily went around or over them, 
and often even commanded them to his service and made them wings 
and weapons for his advancement along his luminous and triumphant 
course. 

Mr. Fruin w^as born in County Tipperary, Ireland, in 1831. When 
he was two years old his parents, John and Catherine (Baker) Fruin, 
brought him to the United States, and in this country the father, who 
was also a contractor, died in 1861. The son grew to manhood in 
America and in time became a resident of Missouri and bought about 
3,000 acres of land along Locust creek, Linn county. He never lived 
on this land, but his son, John Jacob Fruin, handled it for many years. 

The father kept on with his contracting enterprises in various 
places, after a time locating in St. Louis, where he became one of the 
leaders in construction work, building street railways, sewers and 
other large avenues of public utility. He wrote his name in large and 
enduring phrases in that great city especially, and what he did there 
is in keeping wdth its greatness and enterprise, whose requirements 
are extensive and exacting, and demand the power of genius to meet 
them. 

John Jacob Fruin, his son, was married in 1894 to Miss Catherine 
Hawthorne, a St. Louis lady at the time of her marriage. She is a 
daughter of Robert and Mary (Potts) Hawthorne, natives of Man- 
chester, England. They were married in New Jersey, and were the 
parents of two sons and five daughters, all of whom are living. Mrs. 
Fruin 's maternal grandfather, Joseph Potts, was an English army 



718 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

officer who was in the service in India and died there. Her paternal 
grandfather, William Hawthorne, was a professor of Mathematics in 
Dublin, Ireland, and his life ended in that city. 

Mr. and Mrs. John Jacob Fruin have had two sons and one daugh- 
ter. The sons are living but the daughter has died. Jeremiah S., the 
older son, is a student at St. Mary's College, St. Marys, Kansas, and 
Alfred H. is attending school from the home of his parents. 



THOMAS L. WATSON 

(Deceased) 

The late Thomas L. Watson of Jefferson township, this county, who 
died on December 25, 1877, was in many respects a very interesting 
man, and although his career presented few spectacular features, it 
had some elements of heroism in it, and was always conducted in the 
staight and narrow path of duty in all the relations he bore among 
men. He lived in Linn county forty-four of the fifty-two years of his 
life, and during almost the whole of his mature life was engaged in 
farming. 

Mr. Watson was born in Chariton county, this state, on July 23, 
1825, and was the son of Thomas and Sarah Jane (Fowler) Watson, 
natives of Virginia, and among the earliest settlers in Linn county, 
locating here in 1833. The father was a man of local prominence in 
both Chariton and Linn counties, representing each in the state legis- 
lature. He kept the first tavern in this county, and the structure stood 
on the Brunswick and Chillicothe road on a farm now belonging to 
W. 0. Anderson. His father, Thomas Watson, was born in Ireland and 
came to this country in 1773 before the Revolutionary War, in which 
he took part, being in the Colonial army throughout the seven years 
of the struggle and was present at the surrender of General Cornwallis. 
He died in this county in 1840, at the age of ninety-seven years. He 
served as sergeant of Captain Sam Kearsley's company, which was 
attached to the Sixth Virginia Regiment, commanded by Colonel 
James Hendricks, 

Thomas L. Watson was reared on a farm and obtained his educa- 
tion in the primitive coimtry school in the neighborhood of his home. 
When the Mexican War began he and his two brothers enlisted in 
Captain Barbee's company, and during the war were in General Price's 
command. They served through the whole of the short but decisive 
conflict, and at its close returned to Linn county. In 1849 Thomas 



HISTORY OF LIXX COUXTY 719 

became an argonaut and went with the moving throng to California. 
He came back a year later, and on March 13, 1851, he was united in 
marriage with Miss Eliza J. Parks, a daughter of James and Frances 
(Heryford) Parks, of Cliariton county. He then located on the farm 
on which he died, the land having been granted to him by the govern- 
ment for his services in the Mexican War. 

Although a vigorous farmer and attentive to all his duties as such, 
Mr. Watson Avas a great hunter, having the reputation of killing more 
deer than any other man in this county. He always had an abundant 
supply of venison the year round, and seemed to know better than any 
of his neighbors where to get game at all times. In addition to his 
farming and hunting he kept the first ferry on Locust creek in this 
county, and carried a hickory club on going to and from the ferry with 
which to kill snakes. 

Mr. Watson was a deacon in the Baptist church for twenty-three 
years, and throughout his life, from the dawn of his manhood, was a 
most worthy and estimable citizen. His widow survived him almost 
thirty-three years, dying on the farm on August 12, 1910. They were 
the parents of thirteen children, six sons and seven daughters. Six of 
the daughters and two of the sons are living. Charles H., the first 
born of the family, was badly wounded while discharging a gun, the 
breech pin entering his forehead, when he was seventeen years old. 
He died of this wound seven years later, but in the meantime more 
than forty pieces of his skull were taken out from time to time. The 
other children were named in the order of birth: Missouri F., William 
T., James, Jordan P., Bettie L., Mary E., Sarah R., Oscar Y., Ada E., 
Ellen L., Clarence B. and Zella M. Those who are now li\dng are: 
Missouri F., Wm. T., Bettie L., Sarah R., Oscar Y., Ada E., Ellen L., 
Zella M., and all are residents of Linn county but two. 



FRANK E. GRESS 

Photography, the real "art preservative" in all our activities, 
which catches and fixes in imperishable lineaments the witching smile 
of childhood, the noble beauty of womanhood, and even smoothes away 
the ruggedness from the wrinkled brow of care, is well represented in 
Brookfield by the work of Frank E. Gress, the leading photographer 
of the city and this part of the state. He has a thorough mastery of 
his business in all its details, and he gives his patrons the full benefit 



720 HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 

of all his knowledge and skill in the work he does for them at all times, 
never slighting anything. 

It is gratifying to the people who patronize him and the residents 
of the whole community to know, too, that he is a native artist, having 
been born, reared and educated in Linn county, and began his career 
as an artist here. His life began on December 10, 1884, at Bucklin, 
where his parents, Frank and Helen (Harrison) Gress, were then liv- 
ing. The father was a native of the state of New York and the mother 
of Missouri. The father was in the railroad service during the greater 
part of his mature life, serving as station agent at Bucklin for ten 
years, and afterward as a conductor until his death, which occurred 
in 1907, the mother dying within the same year. 

The son, who is the immediate subject of these paragraphs, began 
life for himself under the deep gloom of his double bereavement 
through the death of his parents, and amid difficulties of a serious 
nature due to his having to care and provide for the five younger chil- 
dren in the family and his grandmother. He supported them all for 
years, and is still aiding in the support of three of the children. But 
these difficulties did not freeze up the artistic soul within him or 
dampen the ardor with which it inspired him. They seemed only to 
strengthen the fiber of his manhood, increase his determination to suc- 
ceed in life and fortify his courage for its battle. 

Mr. Gress grew to manhood in Brookfield and attended its public 
schools. After leaving school he served a year and a half as appren- 
tice to J. C. Gardner, prominent as a photographer in Brookfield, and 
at the close of this apprenticeship went to Kansas City, Missouri, 
where he passed five years completing his preparation for his pro- 
fession and perfecting himself in the details of the business. At the 
end of the period mentioned he returned to Brookfield, and on May 6, 
1906, opened the studio which he now conducts, and which, by his 
industry and enterprise he has made the most complete, and through 
his artistic sense the most ornate and attractive, in this locality and 
one not easily surpassed in any city of the size and rank of Brookfield 
or much larger ones. 

On October 1, 1911, Mr. Gress was united in marriage with Miss 
Pyrle G. Churchill, a native of Iowa and the daughter of L. S. and 
Emma (Gold) Churchill, residents of the county since 1908. In the 
fraternal life of the community Mr. Gress has taken a warm interest 
as a member of the Order of Elks and several other fraternities. In 
all matters pertaining to the improvement of his home city and county 




JAMES HIER, SR. 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 721 

and the welfare and benefit of their people he has always been ener- 
getic and helpful, never withholding his hand from any that he could 
aid, and never stinting the service he has sought to render. His career 
has been prosperous from the beginning, and he has appreciated the 
support the community has given him. In return he has done all he 
could to help the city along, and the people appreciate his efforts in 
the same measure. They esteem him also as a man and a citizen, and 
he has shown himself worthy of the regard bestowed upon him by his 
demeanor in every relation in life. 



JAMES HIER, SR. 

Having located at Marceline within a year after the town was 
founded, and having passed all his subsequent years within its borders, 
actively engaged in industrial or mercantile pursuits, James Hier, Sr., 
who is one of the few of its old settlers still left to tell the story of the 
earlier days of struggle and effort to get the new municipal creation 
on its feet and moving forward, is entitled to the veneration felt for 
him as pioneer, and the universal respect he enjoys as a man and 
citizen. 

Mr. Hier was born in the mining section of Wales on January 19, 
1846, and is a son of William and Lettuce (Lewis) Hier, both of whom 
passed the whole of their lives and died in Wales. The father was a 
miner, and the son grew to manhood amid mining scenes, and also 
went to work in the mines as soon as he was old enough, which was in 
his boyhood. He remained at home, working in the mines and cherish- 
ing an ambition for something better in life, until 1869. Then, being 
twenty-three years old, and full of resolution and self-reliance, he 
determined to seek wider opportunities and more promising condi- 
tions in a foreign land than any which appeared before him in his 
own. 

Accordingly, in that year he came to the United States and located 
at Bevier, Macon county, in this state. He at once found emplojTuent 
in the mines there, for the work of which he was well qualified, and 
remained there engaged in mining twenty years. In 1889 he moved 
to Marceline, and here he passed the first two years of his residence 
working in the mines also, and being among the first men to dig coal 
in this locality. He was not, however, merely a coal digger as a 
laborer, for he was operating the mine himself and on his own account. 



722 HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 

In 1891 Mr. Hier opened a grocery store, and in the management 
of this he has been continuously engaged almost ever since. He has 
won and kept the confidence of the people as a merchant, and has also 
secured for himself their approval and regard as a citizen and public 
official, having served them and the city well and wisely as an alder- 
man for some years. He lias always been deeply and intelligently 
interested in the progress and development of the city, township and 
county of his residence, and has shown his interest by judicious and 
helpful support of every desirable enterprise for their advancement. 

In politics Mr. Hier is a Republican and loyal to his party, though 
not eager for anything it has to bestow in the way of public office. 
Fraternally he is connected with the Order of Odd Fellows, and in 
religious affiliation he has been a member of the Baptist church for 
fifty-five years. Both his lodge and his church claim a large share of 
his attention, for he believes firmly in both as means of grace for the 
improvement of mankind, and is zealous in aiding them to the largest 
and best development and greatest usefulness. 

Mr, Hier was married on December 23, 1865, to Miss Ann Evans, 
who is, like himself, a native of Wales. They have seven children: 
Annie, who is now the wife of William L. Mathewson, of Washington ; 
William, who is a resident of Montana; Margaret M., who is the wife 
of Lawrence Love, of Marceline; James T., a resident of Marceline; 
Elizabeth, who married Sandusky C. Bevans, and has her home with 
him at Marceline ; Hannah, who is married to J. H. George, and dwells 
at Marceline, and Elmer, who resides in the new state of Oklahoma, 
and exemplifies the enterprise of its i3eople in his own. 



PRICE BOWYER 



Well known throughout Linn county and the counties which 
adjoin it as a leading farmer and breeder of high grade horses and 
jacks, and generally respected by all classes of the people as an ele- 
vated and useful citizen. Price Bowyer of Jackson township, this 
county, occupies a position in the public regard that would be credit- 
able to any man and must be based on genuine merit. In their esti- 
mate of him the people are not misled by any pretentiousness or dis- 
play of tinsel on his part, for he is a plain, practical man of business, 
and as such they have known him long, for he has lived in the county 
from his birth. 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 723 

Mr. Bowyer was born in Clay township in 1861, the date of his 
birth being December 30. He is a son of Spencer and Sarah A. (Deer- 
ing) Bowyer, the former also a native of this county and the latter 
born in Warren county, Missouri. The father was born in Clay town- 
ship in 1835. His father, Jesse Bowyer, was born and reared in Ten- 
nessee and came to Missouri in his young manhood. He located first 
in Howard county, then, at an early day, moved to Linn county, where 
he died well advanced in years. 

Spencer Bowyer, the father of Price, grew to manhood in Linn 
county and farmed here for many years, then retired from active work 
and took up his residence in Linneus. He and his wife were the par- 
ents of thirteen children, nine sons and four daughters. Seven of the 
sons and three of the daughters are living, and five of the ten are res- 
idents of Linn county, still abiding in the land of their parents and 
grandparents. 

Price Bowyer was reared and educated in Linn county, and has 
been engaged in farming and breeding high grade horses and jacks, 
as has been noted, from the dawn of his manhood. He has been suc- 
cessful in both departments of his industry, and has won for himself 
a wide-spread and excellent reputation as an enterprising and pro- 
gressive farmer, and a knowing and far-seeing live stock man. All 
his operations are conducted with the utmost care and on the best 
information available to him, and the result is that his products are of 
the first quality in both harvests and stock. 

On October 9, 1881, Mr. Bowyer was united in marriage with Miss 
Malinda Turner, a daughter of William and Hannah (West) Turner 
of Linn county, this state. Of the children born of the union seven are 
living: Berl, Floy, Mabel, Sally, Omi J. Spencer and Sterling P. Floy 
is the wife of 0. L. Phillips; Mabel is the wife of C. E. Goins, and Sally 
is the wife of G. D. Alexander. Omi J., Spencer and Sterling P. are 
still living under the parental roof tree. 

Mr. Bowyer is a Democrat in his political relations and has been 
an active and intelligent worker for his party for years. He has held no 
office, however, and desired none but that of school director. Frater- 
nally he is a member of the Order of Odd Fellows. He has pushed his 
own business with enterprise and vigor, and he has displayed the same 
qualities with regard to the affairs of his township and county, taking; 
an active part in every undertaking invohdng their progress and im- 
provement. He is well known and well thought of in all parts of the 
county, both for his skill and progressiveness in his business and for 
his public spirit and strong local patriotism as a man and citizen. 



724 HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 

DR. JENKINS GOOCH 

Although not a native of Linn county, Dr. Jenkins Gooch, who now 
lives near Purdin, but in Jackson township, has been a resident of the 
county from the time when he was but three months old, and is now the 
oldest physician and surgeon within its borders. He is passing the 
evening of his long and useful life on his farm, retired from active prac- 
tice, resting from his labors and enjoying the fruits of his past-time 
industry and good management in his business affairs. And the evening 
of life for him is one of great serenity and beauty. For he is comfort- 
able in a worldly way and he is cheered and consoled for all the cares 
he has ever borne and all the privations he ever suffered by the univer- 
sal esteem of the whole population of the county in which he so long 
labored and ministered to the welfare of the people of all classes and 
conditions. 

Dr. Gooch was born on his father's farm in Chariton county, Mis- 
souri, on September 7, 1841, and within the same year his parents 
moved to Linn county and located on government land in Jackson town- 
ship. Their history will be found in a sketch of the doctor's brother, 
Alexander Gooch, which appears elsewhere in this volume. The doctor 
was reared to manhood in Jackson township, and obtained his early 
education in the schools of the wilderness around him, the one he 
attended most being located one and one-half miles southwest of his 
father's farm, and known as the Mount Olive School. As he grew to 
boyhood and youth, he assisted in clearing the wild land on which the 
family was located, and later received more advanced instruction in 
academic lines at Roanoke Academy, in Howard county. 

After completing the course of learning available at this institu- 
tion, he began studying medicine under the tuition of Dr. Harvey, of 
Roanoke, and, when he felt that he was sufficiently prepared, attended 
lectures at the Missouri Medical College, in St. Louis. This was in the 
winter of 1867-8, and he began his practice in the summer of 1868. He 
kept uip his close attention to his profession and his industry in prac- 
ticing it until about two years ago; then, feeling that he had accom- 
plished his mission in it, he retired from practice, devoting his attention 
to his farm, on which he has since been living quietly. 

But before Dr. Gooch 's professional life, or his preparation for it, 
began, he had thrilling experiences and adventures, which gave him 
opportunity to show the mettle of which he was made, and proved that 
it was sterling. In 1862 he joined Company K, Second Infantry, First 
Brigade, Confederate army, under General Price, and during his serv- 



HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 725 

ice received a serious wound in the arm at the battle of Pea Ridge, 
which disqualified him for further military activity, and he was there- 
upon discharged and ready to return to his home. 

He had, however, no other means of transportation than walking, 
and made the journey from Little Rock, Arkansas, to this county on 
foot. He was suffering from his wound, ill with chills and fever, and 
without arms of any kind, offensive or defensive. While in this condi- 
tion he lost his way in an extensive forest, and during his wanderings 
met with a ferocious panther, from which he only escaped by strategy 
and heroic exertion. After arriving home and getting his wound cured, 
he went to Nebraska in 1865, and for eighteen months was engaged in 
freighting in that state and Colorado. In his military service, on his 
long and wearying journey home, and in the hazardous pursuit he fol- 
lowed on the road, or along the old trails, he faced every danger with 
lofty courage, and although his physical strength was often severely 
tried, his spirit made it equal to every requirement, whether of peril or 
privation. 

Of his professional career and services to the people of this county, 
it would seem superfluous to speak. His exhaustive knowledge of his 
profession and his wisdom and skill in applying that knowledge; his 
mastery of its theory and his resourcefulness in practice ; his genial 
and sympathetic nature, which is so persuasive in effect and so helpful 
in a curative way, and his indefatigable industry in attending to calls 
during the years of his full energy and vigor, are so well known all 
over Linn county that no description of them here could add to the gen- 
eral knowledge on the subject in this locality, which has been the scene 
of his labors. The value, the productiveness, the advanced state of 
cultivation of his fine 200-acre farm in Jackson township, and the com- 
modious and complete improvements on it, are also so well known that 
no comment on them would be in place here. These all speak for them- 
selves in the territory for which this work is intended. 

On February 11, 1874, the doctor was married to Miss Bettie 
Morris, a daughter of Jeremiah Morris, who came to Missouri in 1854, 
to Buchanan county, and came to Linn county in 1860. He emigrated 
to this state from Larue county, Kentucky. The cause of the Southern 
Confederacy enlisted his S5T:npatliy, and he served in its anny for one 
year. His wife, the mother of Mrs. Gooch, was Miss Martha McGovock 
before her marriage, and was a native of Wythe county, Virginia. 

Dr. and Mrs. Gooch have had thirteen children, eleven of whom are 
living: Tilden, Linn, Richard, Lena, Mildred, Nannie, Cordie, Warren, 
Roy, Drink and Cleo. Lena is the wife of E. Phillips, and Mildred is 



726 HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 

the wife of Carlus Stevenson. The doctor has never been very active 
in politics, but has always been interested in good government for his 
county, state and country, and always deeply interested in the welfare 
of the whole people. A lingering representative of the fading band of 
heroic pioneers who settled this county, he is held in reverence by all its 
residents. 



WILLIAM T. McGHEE 

A native of Missouri, and from his boyhood a resident of Linn 
county, William McGhee, one of the prosperous and progressive farmers 
of Enterprise township, is well known to the people of this and other 
parts of the county, and all they know of him is to his credit. He is 
industriously and profitably engaged in farming and raising live stock, 
and is also active and progressive with reference to the affairs of his 
township and the whole of Linn county, and the people esteem him as 
one of their most useful and enterprising and far-seeing citizens. 

Mr. McGhee was born in Calloway county, Missouri, on November 
24, 1871. His parents, James W. and Rebecca (Miller) McGhee, were 
also born in Missouri, the latter in Calloway and the former in Linn 
county. The father was reared and educated in this county, and passed 
the whole of his life within its borders. He was an extensive live-stock 
man for his opportunities, and attained considerable local reputation 
for his success in the business. He and his wife were the parents of 
two children : William T. and his brother, Charles E. The father died 
in 1911, but the mother is living. 

William T. McGhee was brought by his parents to Linn county in 
his boyhood, and grew to manhood here. He obtained his education 
in the country schools in the neighborhood of his father's farm, and 
assisted in the labor of cultivating the latter and what was incident to 
the stock business carried on by his father. When he attained his 
majority, he started in the live-stock industry and as a general farmer 
for himself, and he has ever since been engaged in those two lines of 
employment and business. 

On March 24, 1894, he was united in marriage with Miss May 
Muirhead, a daughter of Hugh Muirhead, who became a resident of 
Linn county in 1858, and is now deceased. Five children have been 
born of the union, and all of them are living. They are : Nettie, Jay, 
Jessie, Lessie and Frances. The father has taken an active part in 
political affairs in his township, and has served as township collector 
and trustee four years. He is an earnest working member of the 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 727 

Democratic party, and lais services in the field and his wisdom in coun- 
sel are warmly appreciated by both the leaders and the rank and file of 
his party. 

The first member of this particular branch of the McGliee family 
to locate in Linn county was John McGhee, the grandfather of Will- 
iam T. He came to the county about the year 1845, and entered a tract 
of government land in Enterprise township. With great energy and 
continued industry, he cleared, broke up and improved his farm, making 
it one of the most advanced and attractive in the township at the time. 
But he did not live long to enjoy the fruits of his labor on it, dying at 
the early age of thirty-five. But, although his life was so short in the 
county, he left behind him, when he answered the summons inevitable 
to all mankind, an excellent example as a farmer and a good name as 
an upright, honest, straightforward and progressive man and citizen. 
His grandson, William T. McGhee, has the same reputation, and well 
deserves it. 



GEORGE A. BARNES 

The venerable subject of this brief review, who is one of the 
patriarchs of Jackson township, Linn county, has been a resident of 
the township in which he now lives continuously for fifty-four years, 
and has passed forty-five years on the farm which he now occupies 
and owns. His life record is interesting from many points of view, 
and worthy of commendation from all. He is now more than eighty- 
one years old. He is a native of another state than this ; grew to man- 
hood in another many miles away from the border of Missouri ; passed 
two years in the gold regions of the Pacific slope ; then came back to 
Linn county, became possessed of the tract of land which constitutes 
his present fine farm, when it was an unbroken expanse of wilder- 
ness, and settled down from all his wanderings. He has since devoted 
his time and energies to improving his farm and making it comfortable 
as a home and valuable in its productiveness. 

Mr. Barnes was born in Tennessee, on April 9, 1831, and is a son 
of William and Sarah (Durham) Barnes, the former a native of North 
Carolina and the latter of Tennessee. The parents and several of their 
children came together to Missouri in 1855 and located on a tract of 
government land in this county. The land had not been broken and 
was still wasting its substance and its strength in producing the wild 
growth of ages. Mr. Barnes lived on it a number of years and brought 
it to some degree of fruitfulness. In 1864 he crossed the plains to the 



728 HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 

state of Washington, and there he passed the remainder of his life, 
which ended in 1884. The mother died in this county. They had a 
large family, all now deceased but George A. The father was a Baptist 
in religion and a Democrat in politics. 

George A. Barnes was reared in Alabama and came to Missouri in 
1856, but he passed some few years in Illinois first. He came direct to 
Linn county and remained here about one year. In 1857 he went to 
California, but, even if successful, his life as a miner in that state was 
not to his liking, although he stuck it out for two j-ears. At the end of 
that period he returned to Missouri and, nine years later, took up his 
residence on his present Jackson township farm in this county, and on 
this he has made his home ever since. 

In 1867 he was married on this farm to Miss Susan Morris, a native 
of Linn county. They have four children: John H., Parmelia E., 
Sarah J. and Jacob A. Even as late as then the country around him 
was largely undeveloped, almost wholly unimproved and but sparsely 
settled. Mr. Barnes resolutely joined hands with the other pioneers 
and helped to give an impetus to progress here that has been steady 
and continuous and has wrought wonderful improvements, and is still 
at work and with constantly augmenting power. It has been his good 
fortune to see the country leaping forward, and it is a source of great 
present comfort to him to know that he has done his full share iu 
assisting in bringing about the change. 

He has been assessor of the township, and in many other ways has 
been of service to its residents and all its civil, educational and religious 
institutions. For a number of years he has been retired from active 
pursuits,, but he has never lost interest in the locality of his home, and 
has never stayed his hand when he could do it good. The people of 
the t^ownship respect him highly for what he has done, for the good 
citizenship he has displayed, for the uprightness of his long life and 
for his sterling manhood in private and public relations of every kind. 



OBADIAH BROYLES 

There is nothing in history more impressive, and, if viewed with 
the eye of true discernment, nothing more grand and inspiring, than 
the march of empire in this country, moving from the Atlantic slope 
over the Alleghanies, across the Mississippi valley, and on over the 
Eockies to the shores of the Pacific. And that it was largely an advance 
of mighty consequence due to individual effort rather than to organized 
forces, only adds to its grandeur, in the last anjilysis. 



HISTORY OF LIN^ COUNTY 729 

One family of this militant conquest of the wilderness, step by 
step, by hardy pioneers, independent of one another, yet all tending 
to the same glorious end, is represented in Jackson township, Linn 
county, Missouri, by Obadiah Broyles, one of the leading live-stock 
breeders of this part of the state now, but a child of five years when 
he became a resident of this county. He was born in Boyle county, 
Kentucky, on May 13, 1848, and is a son of Christopher and Margaret 
J. (Broyles) Broyles, also natives of that state, where the mother died 
soon after the birth of her son Obadiah. The father was a farmer in 
his native state, and he followed the same pursuit after reaching this 
state and county. 

In 1853, gathering his household goods about him, and such per- 
sonal property as he deemed necessary for supplying his wants on the 
way and enabling him to get a start in the wilderness to which he was 
going, he left "the dark and bloody ground," and journeyed with teams 
to Missouri and Sullivan county, where he laid the foundations of his 
new home. He bought forty acres of land which was still in the sleep 
of ages and had never heard the commanding voice or felt the per- 
suasive hand of the husbandman. On this little tract in the^ wilds he 
built a crude log cabin as a home for himself and family, and at once 
went to work to break up his land and make it yield his household a 
livelihood. He made it fruitful by his persistent and well directed 
labor, and lived on or near it until his death, which occurred in 1877. 

By his first marriage he became the father of four sons and four 
daughters. Three of the sons and two of the daughters are still living. 
Their mother, as has been stated, died in Kentucky, and the father 
married, as his second wife, Mrs. McCormick, a widow% who added 
three to his offspring, all of whom are living. The father attempted 
nothing in his work but general farming and raising enough live stock 
for his own purposes. But he succeeded in making his way to a com- 
fortable estate in this county for his day and circumstances, and left 
his mark on this locality in doing it. 

His son Obadiah had no educational advantages in the way of 
direct schooling. When he was of a suitable age to go to school, there 
was no school available in the neighborhood of his home. And if there 
had been, he could not have derived much benefit from it, for from his 
boyhood he was forced, owing to the circumstances of the family, to 
make his own way by working out by the month, as there were many 
mouths to feed, and all the force the family could command was put in 
action to satisfy their requirements. 



730 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

He continued to work for others until he reached the age of twenty- 
six ; then, in 1870, in response to the longings within him, began to do 
something on his own account. In 1882 he bought 260 acres of land, 
the nucleus of his present farm of 580 acres, and began to repeat on 
it the work of development and improvement wrought by his father on 
his patch in the wilderness on which he got his start and reared his 
family. He broke up his land gradually and improved it with good 
buildings. And as one tract became fruitful, he bought another, until 
he acquired the whole of his present fine farm of 580 acres, as has been 
indicated. 

Mr. Broyles was first married in 1874 to Miss Mary Fields, who 
died in 1887. They had seven children, five of whom are living : Wal- 
ter ; Ada, who is now the wife of Frank A. Whetstone ; Orson ; Cordia, 
who is the wife of C. J. Gore, and Mary E., who is the wife of Winfield 
Edens. In 1889 he married, as his second wife, Miss Nettie Wood, a 
daughter of James N. Wood, who became a resident of Linn county 
during the Civil War. They have seven children: Fannie J., Alfred, 
Almira, Irene M., Curtis L., Hope C. and Flora I. His second wife is 
still living. Her parents were Indiana farmers, who moved from their 
native state first to Iowa and afterward to this county. 

The principal industry which Mr. Broyles is engaged in is breed- 
ing draft horses, fine jacks and registered Hereford cattle, and in this 
industry he is easily one of the leaders in this part of the state, and is 
widely and favorably known as one. He is also held in good esteem as 
a man and a citizen of enterprise and progressiveness, earnestly and 
practically interested in the abiding welfare and continued improve- 
ment of his township, county and state in all avenues of advancement. 



ALEXANDER SAYERS 

Although only sixteen years of age when he became a resident of 
Linn county, Alexander Sayers of Jackson township is properly classed 
as a pioneer in this region, not merely by courtesy or construction, but 
because of the actual facts in the case. He was a youth in years but 
a man in stature and strength when he came, and he took a man's place 
and did a man's work in the great task of settling, improving and devel- 
oping the country. Andi»his record for stalwart manhood and faithful 
service among the people here is excellent from the beginning. 

Mr. Sayers was born in Tazewell county, Virginia, on February 
15, 1832. His parents, John and Elizabeth (Goodwin) Sayers, were 



HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 731 

also natives of Virginia. They moved to Kentucky some years after 
their marriage, and there they continued farming, the occupation that 
had employed their energies in their native state. Long years they 
lived and labored in Kentucky, and at last died on the farm they had 
made valuable and attractive by their industry and skill, and which 
had yielded abundant harvests in return for arduous but wisely 
directed toil. The grandfather, whose name was also Alexander 
Sayers, was a pioneer of Kentucky, often a companion of Daniel Boone, 
and an Indian fighter of local renown. 

Alexander Sayers gTew to the age of sixteen in Virginia, and ob- 
tained there all the schooling he ever got from the schoolmaster. In 
1848 he came to this state in company with his uncle, Samuel Sayers, 
traversing the long and dreary distance with teams and consuming 
a month and a half in the journey. On their arrival in Linn county 
they located in Jackson township, and here Mr. Sayers found employ- 
ment in a grist and saw mill on Locust creek. In 1854 he was married 
to Miss Elizabeth Morris, a daughter of Thomas Morris, a pioneer of 
Linn county, who became a resident of it in 1837. 

After his marriage Mr. Sayers determined to quit working in the 
mill, which had been the scene and beneficiary of his labors for six 
years, and start an enterprise of his own. He bought a tract of land in 
Sullivan county which he improved and lived on until 1865. In that 
year he returned to this county and took up his residence on the farm 
which he now owns and occupies, and which has been his home ever 
since. It was in the wilds when he took possession of it, and still the 
habitation and roaming ground of its aboriginal occupants, man and 
beast. Deer and wild turkeys were plentiful, and he got his share of 
them by the skill of his marksmanship and good judgment as a hunter. 
But he made no specialty of this. 

Mr. and Mrs. Sayers have had eight children: John W., Thomas, 
James A., Martha S., Mary E., David L., Walter and Altie E. The 
father has always been warmly interested in the welfare of his town- 
ship and county, and willing to do everything his circumstances would 
permit to advance it. During the Civil War he served as a state mili- 
tiaman, and while not called into actual hostilities, he was always 
ready for the call if it came and prepared to do his full duty in obedi- 
ence to it. 

In his political relations he is an ardent Democrat, and as such has 
served as township supervisor and collector. But in the performance 
of his duties while in office he knew no party, but exerted all his activi- 
ties in behalf of the whole people and for the common good. His 



732 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

religious connection is with the Methodist Episcopal church, of which 
he has been a member for many years. And in the congregation to 
which he belongs he is a zealous and faithful worker in every depart- 
ment of its activity. The people around him have found him true to 
every trust and worthy of their highest confidence and esteem, and 
they have bestowed their regard on him freely. 



BROWNING SAVINGS BANK 

This enterprising, progressive and highly useful financial institu- 
tion, which the people of Browning and the surrounding country make 
liberal use of as a depository of therr savings, and which they hold in 
very cordial confidence and esteem, was founded in April, 1884, and 
opened for business on the fourteenth day of that month, with a capital 
stock of $10,000. The first ofiicers were B. D. Boiling, president, and 
C. A. Deadrick, cashier. The original directors, in addition to Mr. 
Boiling, were C. A. Deadrick, J. H. Biswell, J. Schrock, Perry McCol- 
lum and J. W. Anderson, the last of Hamilton, Missouri. Mr. Boiling 
has held the office of president of the institution from the time of its 
organization, but the cashier has been changed several times in the 
twenty-eight years of the bank's history. 

The changes in the cashiership were in regular order as follows: 
C. A. Deadrick was succeeded by W. P. Taylor, and Mr. Taylor by W. 
T. Prather. Mr. Prather retired in favor of T. M. Sayers, and he in 
turn gave way to J. B. Harmon, who is now the vice president, and 
whose successor as cashier was F. R. Duncan, who still fills the posi- 
tion. The capital stock remains as it was at the founding of the bank. 
But the volume of business has been greatly expanded and the reputa- 
tion of the institution for sound and conservative management, coupled 
with commendable enterprise in the control of its affairs, has grown 
and spread as time has passed until now the bank is considered one 
of the best of its magnitude in the state. 

Beverly D. Boiling, the president of the bank, was born at Perry- 
ville, Boyle county, Kentucky, on April 18, 1852, and is a son of James 
Paine and Lucinda (Kenley) Boiling, also natives of Kentucky, who 
became the parents of two children, their son Beverly D. and their 
daughter Luella, who is now the widow of Thos. H. Gooch. Her hus- 
band was a soldier in the Union army during the Civil War. James P. 
Boiling was a millwright and farmer, and followed the two industries 



HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 733 

to which he had been trained during his residence in Kentucky and 
also after becoming a resident of this state. 

In 1860 the family moved to Missouri and located for a short 
time in Sullivan county, removing to Nodaway county in the spring 
of 1861. In the fall of that year the father enlisted in defense of the 
Union in Company B, Thirty-fifth Missouri Volunteer Infantry. The 
regiment soon became a part of the Army of the Cumberland, and Mr. 
Boiling remained in it until he died from an illness contracted in the 
service, his end coming at Cairo, Illinois, on February 24, 1864, and 
leaving his son an orphan at the age of twelve years. 

Not long after the father joined the army the mother removed her 
children to Sullivan county again. The son remained there about one 
year, then went to Louisville, Kentucky, to pursue a course of business 
training in the Bryant & Stratton Commercial College. After com- 
pleting this course and working for a time at various occupations he 
secured a position in the custom house as admeasurement and record- 
ing clerk for steamboats. He held this position two years and three 
months, but found the confinement and close application the duties 
required telling on his health and reducing his flesh. 

He therefore deemed it advisable to seek a change of climate, and 
came to Linn county, Missouri, locating near Enterprise in the town- 
ship of the same name. After remaining there two or three years he 
removed to Texas in 1873, and during the next few months rambled 
over that great state. Finally he took up his resident in the northern 
part and accepted a position as commissary with a grading .company 
on the Trans-continental Railway, holding the place for three months. 
He then took a trip over parts of the state he had not previously vis- 
ited, and at the end of it located in Madison county, where he was 
appointed deputy clerk of the district court, a position he held for 
three years, improving his leisure time by studying law, and in Novem- 
ber, 1874, he was admitted to practice by Judge James Burnett of that 
district. 

Mr. Boiling practiced law about one year, and then abandoned 
Texas and the profession at the same time. He moved to Browning 
and started an enterprise in the lumber trade, and at the same time 
keeping a stock of farm implements, and kindred commodities. His 
business started practically with the town and has grown with its 
growth. In the course of a few years it expanded to such proportions 
that he handled annually about one hundred carloads of lumber and a 
number of farm machinery. His mother died at Browning in 1887, 
after a residence of several years in the town. 



734 HISTOPtY OF LIXX COUNTY 

Mr. Boiling's grandfather, Richard K. Boiling, was born at Peters- 
burg, Virginia. He moved from the Old Dominion to Kentucky in his 
young manhood, and several years afterward was accidentally killed 
in a fight arising out of a feud. While looking at the fight as an inno- 
cent spectator he received a wound from a pistol ball which proved 
fatal. His wife was, before her marriage to him. Miss Priscilla Little, 
and they became the parents of eight children, seven sons and one 
daughter, all of whom have been dead for a number of years. 

On February 25, 1877, Mr. Boiling was united in marriage with 
Miss Sarah 0. Fleming, a daughter of Judge Jas. T. Fleming. Their 
living children number four: James P., a farmer and stock-breeder; 
John L., a bookkeeper in Kansas City, Missouri; Bemice L., who is 
still living with her parents; and Beverly F., who is attending school. 

Mr. Boiling is a member of the school board of Browning. He is 
a Republican in politics, but too deeply immured in business to be 
either desirous of public office or an active partisan. His lumber and 
implement business was quite successful, and under his wise and skill- 
ful management the bank over which he presides has also become an 
institution of magnitude, doing an extensive and very active business. 
On February 29, 1912, its resources amounted to $219,290.45. The sur- 
plus aggregated $30,000, and the net undivided profits $10,139.14, all 
on a capital stock of $10,000. 

In religious connection he and the members of his family belong 
to the Christian church. He is the oldest banker in Linn county in 
the number of years continuously devoted to the business and has 
been one of the most successful. In the affairs of his township and 
county he has always shown a very active and serviceable interest, 
and the people throughout the county look upon him as one of the best 
and most progressive and useful men among them. 



PERRY McCOLLUM 

The scion of a martial family, and himself a soldier in the Civil 
War, even though but for a short time, it would not have been sur- 
prising if natural inclination had led this prominent and successful 
farmer of Linn county to devote himself to military life and make the 
trade of arms his occupation for all his years. But whatever attrac- 
tions the tented field, the glory of conquest, the fervor of battle and 
fury of the charge might have had for him in early life, if they had any, 
they did not win his mature judgment, and he has steadily and zeal- 



HISTOEY OF LINX COUNTY 735 

ously devoted himself to the safer and more profitable pursuits of 
peaceful industry. 

Mr. McCoUum is a native of Clay county, Kentucky, born on 
March 20, 1835. His parents, Daniel and Lydia (Johnson) McCollum, 
were also natives of the Blue Grass state and passed the whole of their 
lives within its borders. The father was born on December 22, 1806, 
and died at the age of seventy-four years. The mother passed away 
in 1884, aged seventy-six. They were the parents of five sons and two 
daughters. Three of the sons served in the Union army during the 
sectional strife that almost tore our country asunder in the awful years 
of 1861 and 1865. 

The grandfather, David McCollum, was born and reared in South 
Carolina, and in early manhood emigrated to Kentucky among the 
pioneers of that state. He afterward became a pioneer of Missouri 
also, locating in this state and Linn county in 1847. He was a captain 
in a Kentucky regiment in the War of 1812, but during the greater 
part of his life he was a farmer, and as such he left the mark of his 
plowshare in the soil of three states of the Union. He died in Linn 
county at the age of ninety-six. 

Perry McCollum was reared to the age of twenty in his native state 
of Kentucky, and at that age started out to make his own way in the 
world. His first design was to find a place suited to his desires for his 
operations, and in 1855 he came to Linn county on a prospecting tour. 
He remained one year, and then decided to look further, but in 1857 
he returned here, and here he has ever since remained. In 1864 he 
bought an unimproved tract of land, which he cleared as the basis of 
his operations and for a permanent home for himself and his family. 

Having established himself on this and put it in good condition 
for cultivation and occupancy, he bought additional land and repeated 
the process on that, and then made other purchases successively until 
he owned at one time 700 acres, the greater part of which, however, he 
devoted to grazing purposes. The call to arms in 1861 to save the 
Union aroused his patriotism to fervor, and he enlisted in Company B, 
Missouri Home Guards. But he found himself unfit for military serv- 
ice and resigned at the end of the first month after his enrollment. 

He returned to the pursuit of farming, and in that he has ever 
since been industriously, extensively and profitably engaged. On July 
10, 1860, he was united in marriage with Miss Margaret McCollum, a 
daughter of Robert and Mary (Hughes) McCollum. Of the offspring 
from the union seven are living: Nancy, who is the wife of R. I. Gun- 



736 HISTOEY OF LI NX COUNTY 

ter; Rachel, who is the wife of Dr. Nevins; Curtis B.; Minnie, who is 
the wife of R. J. McCollum; Nellie, who is the wife of J. N. Wilson; 
Dr. Herman E., w^hose home is in Laramie, Wyoming, and Dr. Beverly 
B., who resides in Los Angeles, California. 

Mr. McCollum is a Republican in political relations and loyal to 
his party. But he has never sought or desired official positions of any 
kind. He has, however, under the persuasion of the people around 
him, consented to serve on occasions in several township offices and as 
a justice of the peace. His record in each proved that the people were 
wise in urging it upon him and fully vindicated their judgment and 
confidence in electing him to serve them in the advancement of their 
public interests. 

The religious affiliation of Mr. McCollum and his wife is with the 
Methodist Episcopal church, and in fraternal life he has been a Free- 
mason for many years. His devotion to the interests of his church and 
his lodge has been constant and serviceable, and he has exemplified the 
teachings of both in his daily demeanor in all the relations of life. In 
industry he has confined himself to general farming and raising con- 
siderable live stock as the years have come and gone. As a farmer 
he is one of the leaders in Linn county. As a man and citizen he is 
recognized as estimable, worthy and useful in the highest degree. And 
as a representative of Linn county yoemanry, he is cheerfully accorded 
a rank among the best. 



J. W. DUNCAN 



An enterprising farmer in times of peace from his youth to the 
present time, and a gallant soldier in defense of the L^nion during the 
Civil War, J. W. Duncan of Bucklin township has furnished in his 
career a good illustration of the adaptability of American manhood to 
whatever situation may confront it and its genuine and devoted inter- 
est in the welfare of the country under all circumstances. He has 
never shirked duty in any line of endeavor and has been his own main 
reliance in all. His success in life is almost wholly due to his own 
ability and judicious use of opportunities as they have come, and all 
his achievements are but expressions of his native force of character 
sharpened and intensified by the stern but effective lessons of 
experience. 

Mr. Duncan is a native of this state born in Franklin county on 
February 16, 1844. His parents, Thomas J. and Margaret (Nelson) 



HISTORY OF LINX COUNTY 737 

Duncan, were also natives of that county, and the mother died there 
in 1849, when her son J. W. was but five years old. 

In 1859 the father moved his family to Kansas, where he lived 
twenty-five years, then returned to Missouri and located in Jackson 
county. There he died in 1903. His sole occupation through life was 
farming, and this he followed wherever he lived. His father, Elijah 
Duncan, came to Missouri from Tennessee, and after a residence of 
some years in this state died in Holt county. He, also, was a farmer 
and prospered at the business, as did his son Thomas and as has his 
grandson J. W. 

J. W. Duncan grew to manhood in Missouri and Kansas and 
attended the ordinary country schools in both states. After leaving 
school he began farming on his own account, putting in practice for 
himself the knowledge he had acquired while working at home under 
the direction of his father. He farmed for a time in Kansas and two 
years in Arkansas. When the Civil War was in progress, although he 
was not yet at man's estate, he enlisted in Company E, Fourth Kansas 
Volunteer Infantry, which helped to swell the ranks of the federal 
army, entering the service in this company in 1861, when he was but 
seventeen years of age. In 1862 he was transferred to the Sixth Kansas 
Cavalry, in which he served to the end of the war. He took part in 
thirteen engagements in all, among them the battle of Prairie Grove 
and Kane Hill. But, though his comrades fell at his side by the score 
during some of the battles, he escaped unhurt, and at the close of his 
military career returned to his home ready for other duties, whatever 
they might be in kind and however arduous in performance. 

He resumed his farming operations and continued them in various 
places until 1895, when he located in Linn county on the farm on which 
he is still living and laboring to such good advantage. He is careful, 
up to date and progressive in his work, prudent and thrifty in his 
business management and far-seeing in all his calculations. As a 
result he has a very good and well cultivated farm, is prosperous in a 
material way, and stands high in the estimation of the people of his 
township. 

Mr. Duncan was first married in 1869 and by that union became 
the father of ten children, all of whom are living. Their mother died 
in 1893, and in 1894 the father married a second wife, joining himself 
with Mrs. Crippen, a widow of this count3^ They have had three chil- 
dren, of whom two are living. The parents are among the most highly 
respected citizens of the county. 



738 HISTORY OF LIXN COUNTY 

JOSEPH VAN DYKE 

Success in any enterprise or undertaking is creditable to the man 
who wins it, and always to be commended. But when it involves coin- 
manding an unbroken tract of land, wild with the growth of centuries, 
to systematic fruitfulness, wresting from it a comfortable competence 
and making it one of the fruitful and attractive products of civiliza- 
tion, the achievement is of much more than ordinary consequence and 
worthy of much more than ordinary approbation and praise. Such 
an achievement as this is one of the claims of Joseph Van Dyke, an 
extensive and prosperous farmer of Parson Creek township, on the 
regard and approval of the people of Linn county, and further claims 
are shown and acknowledged in his high character as a man, his public 
spirit and progressiveness as a citizen and his genuine merit in every 
way. 

Mr. Van Dyke came to Missouri and Linn county from Adams 
county, Illinois, in 1866, driving through with teams. He lived in 
Illinois ten years, having moved to that state in 1856 from Tennessee, 
where he was born in 1838. He attained his manhood in Illinois, and 
became a farmer there, and also operated a threshing outfit. He con- 
tinued doing this, as well as farming in this county, working the 
threshing outfit every fall for forty-nine years in succession without 
missing one. 

He is a son of Richard and Lucinda (Carter) Van Dyke, also 
natives of Tennessee, and farmers in three states. They moved to 
Adams county, Illinois, in 1856, and farmed there until 1870, when 
they came to this state and located on a farm in Jackson county, 
where they died, the father in 1873 and the mother in 1874. Fourteen 
children, nine sons and five daughters, were born of their union, and 
seven of the sons and four of the daughters are living, and in their 
several localities and walks in life are exemplifying in a commendable 
way the sterling qualities of manhood and womanhood that have made 
the family respected wherever its members have dwelt. 

The i^eternal grandfather of these children, Freeman Van Dyke, 
was a soldier in the Revolutionary war, and endured the hardships 
and privations of military service in that memorable contest from its 
beginning to its close. He was twice married, his second wife being 
Miss Polly Wliittle before her union with him. He died in Tennessee, 
as did his widow some years later, both having attained an advanced 
age and being highly respected. 

Joseph Van Dyke became a farmer in Illinois after leaving school, 




JOSEPH VAN DYKE 



HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 739 

and he has never followed any other occupation except operating his 
threshing outfit with a very unusual if not an unparalleled record, as 
has been mentioned. When he came to Linn county in 1866, he bought 
100 acres of land, and this he subsequently increased by additional 
purchases to 440. The land was all wild when he bought it, and with- 
out improvements of any kind. He has brought it to an advanced 
state of cultivation, erected good buildings on it, and made it one of 
the best farms in the township where it is located. In addition to his 
farming, which is of a general character, he has for a number of years 
been extensively engaged in raising and feeding live stock for the 
markets, local and general, and a very gratifying success has been won 
by him in both lines of his industry by his energy and good manage- 
ment. 

Mr. Van Dyke was married on February 22, 1860, to Miss Cath- 
erine Manerd, a native of Illinois, and by this marriage became the 
father of thirteen children, five of whom are living : Alfaretta, who is 
the wife of Richard Coley, and resides in this county; Lucinda, who 
married C. Litterall, and also has her home here; Hattie, who lives 
in Nebraska, and is the wife of Lamont Runyan ; James, a Linn county 
farmer, and Joseph, Jr., whose home is in Iowa. Their mother died 
in 1905. 

Mr. Van Dyke has long taken an earnest interest and an active 
part in all matters of public improvement in his township and county, 
and is well known throughout the county in consequence of his zeal 
and energy in this behalf. He is also firmly fixed in the respect and 
regard of the people in every township for the same reason, and also 
because of his strict integrity, general enterprise and elevated citizen- 
ship. No duty to his fellowmen in the way of promoting their welfare 
and dealing squarely with them at all times is neglected or slighted by 
him, and they hold his disposition and his conduct in these respects 
in the highest appreciation. Linn county has no more sterling citizen, 
and none who enjoys or is entitled to a larger measure of esteem from 
the residents of the countv generally. 



JOHN T. GOOCH 

Although always a man of peace, and devoted to the constructive 
and productive rather than the destructive lines of human endeavor, 
John T. Gooch, a pioneer of Linn county, and now one of the leading 
farmers of Enterprise townsliip, has demonstrated that he can shoot 
when his country's safety requires the effort, and also when the needs 



710 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

of Ms household or the almost universal passion for hunting makes 
it desirable. When he came to Linn county, in his youth, the region 
abounded in wild game, and the supplies for the frontier tables were 
scant. He, with others, made up for the remoteness of this locality 
from the markets by free levies on the deer and wild turkeys that still 
roamed at will throughout the region. And when the integrity of the 
Union was endangered by armed resistance, he promptly shouldered 
his musket and marched to its defense. 

Mr. Gooch is a native of Bath county, Kentucky, where his 
life began on January 1, 1835. His parents, Thomas S. and Rachel 
(Trumbo) Gooch, were also born in Kentucky, the former in Harrison 
county in 1810, and the latter in Bath county in 1815. The father was 
a farmer in his native state, and in 1848 brought what family he then 
had to Missouri and located on government land in Benton township, 
Linn county. The journey was made with teams, and consumed several 
weeks of wearying travel, exposure to frequent perils, and many priva- 
tions. And when its destination was finally reached, the conditions 
were found to be still full of hardship and danger. 

But the parents were resolute, courageous and determined. They 
set to work to clear and cultivate their wild domain, and within a few 
years had made a comfortable and fruitful home of it. They remained 
on the farm until the death of the father in 1873. The mother passed 
away at Browning on September 15, 1885. They had seven sons and 
one daughter. The daughter and three of the sons are living. Three 
of the sons served in the Union army during the Civil War and were 
with Sherman in his historic and spectacular march to the sea. 

The father was first a Whig and afterward a Republican in politics, 
and his religious affiliation was with the Christian church. The grand- 
father, Thomas Gooch, was a native of Virginia, a pioneer of Ken- 
tucky, and a renowned Indian fighter, making a glorious record in the 
campaigns of "Mad Anthony" Wayne, when necessity forced that dis- 
tinguished warrior to take the field against the ferocious hosts of the 
forest. He had one brother, James, who settled in Grant county, Ken- 
tucky. He became the father of five sons, one of whom moved to 
Mississippi, and was the founder of the family in that state. He died 
in Harrison county, Kentucky. Three of his sons became residents of 
Missouri. They were Thomas, William, John and James. These boys 
were bound out until twenty years of age to learn trades. Two of them 
became tanners, one a boot and shoe maker, and one a saddler. Wil- 
liam and John came to Missouri in 1832. 

John T. Gooch was a youth of thirteen when the family came to 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 'H 

this county and settled on the wild prairie of Benton township. Here 
he completed his limited education in the primitive schools of the time, 
all that were available to him, and assisted in clearing the home farm 
remaining with his parents until 1856. In that year he homesteaded 
on his present farm, securing a portion of it at 75 cents and the rest at 
$1 25 an acre, although it was all prairie. He settled on it with a deter- 
mination to make the most he could of it, and its present condition 
shows that his labors have not been wasted and he has not spent his 
strength in vain. He has converted it into a model farm, well improved • 
with good buildings, completely equipped for its proper tillage, and 
brought to an advanced state of development and productiveness. 

In 1858 Mr. Gooch was married to Miss Ophelia Sutherland, a 
daughter of William Sutherland, who came to Linn county in 1836. 
Two children have been born of the union: Thom.as S., who died m 
1884, and William P., who is living on the home farm, which he culti- 
vates with the skill that comes from close study and practice in applying 
the knowledge thus attained, backed with good judgment and reflective 
observation.' He is accounted as a worthy successor of his father m 
the ranks of enterprising and progressive farmers. 

In political faith and affiliation the father is a Republican. He cast 
his first presidential vote for John Bell, of Tennessee, in 1860. During 
the Civil War he served in the Missouri State Militia from 1862 to 
1864, first with the rank of first lieutenant and afterward with that of 
captain. He saw some service in actual hostilities against the bush- 
whackers, but his company was mainly employed in guarding railroad 
and other property. He and his wife are devout and faithful members 
of the Christian church. 

William P. Gooch, the son and only living child of John T. Gooch, 
was born on July 30, 1859, and has passed the whole of his life to this 
time (1912) on "his father's farm. He was educated in the country 
school in the neighborhood, and from his boyhood has been employed 
on the homestead. In 1885 he was joined in wedlock with Miss Etta 
Patterson, a daughter of Dr. Lewis Patterson. Four children have 
been born of the union, only three of whom are living: John C, Lems 
B. and Paul L. The parents are members of the Christian church. 
They are in charge of the family homestead and devote their time to 
general farming. Like the elder Mr. and Mrs. Gooch, they are well 
esteemed throughout their township and in other parts of the county 
as estimable and upright persons and enterprising, progressive and 
public-spirited citizens. Representing the third generation of his fam- 
ily that has contributed to the advancement of Linn county, William 



743 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

P. Goocli worthily upholds the good name and stimulating traditions of 
his ancestry, and fully deserves the regard bestowed on him. 



SIMON GOOD 



Orphaned in his boyhood by the death of his father, and compelled 
at an early age to do much toward providing for his own livelihood, 
and also to aid in caring for his mother and other members of the 
family, Sim.on Good learned long ago the stern but useful lessons of 
self-reliance and the application of all his resources wisely and judi- 
ciously in the great struggle for advancement among men. The knowl- 
edge gained thereby and the habits thus formed have been his mainstay 
through all his subsequent years, and they have never for a day been 
without their value to him. He is now one of the prominent and suc- 
cessful live-stock men of Clay township, in this county, and he has 
reached his rank in this business and one of equal altitude in his farm- 
ing operations wholly through his own exertions, ability and excellent 
management. 

Mr. Good's life began in Fairfield county, Ohio, on December 7, 
1860. His parents, David and Lydia (Beery) Good, were natives of 
Pennsylvania, and of the sturdy Dutch stock of that state, which does 
nothing startling or spectacular, but holds on to every gain it makes 
in any line of effort or walk of life. The father was a farmer and 
miller. He took up his residence in Ohio in his young manhood, and 
remained there until 1865, industriously engaged in the two occupa- 
tions for which he had been trained. 

In 1865 he moved his family to Page county, Iowa, but his work 
was soon afterward cut short by death in his new home. The mother 
survived him many years, passing away in 1904. They had two sons 
and two daughters, and to the care and rearing of these children she 
devoted herself with the resolute endurance of a Spartan woman and 
the inflexible fidelity to duty of a Eoman matron. The children made 
her house their home until they reached maturity, and all worked for 
the common good of the family as soon as they were able to do anything 
of value and worthy of remuneration. 

Simon Good grew to manhood in Page county, Iowa, obtaining a 
limited education in the country schools, and becoming a farmer even 
before he left school, passing his summers in farm work for the families 
living in the neighborhood of his home. As soon as he could get a start, 
he began farming on his own account, and this he continued doing in 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 743 

the county named above until 1902. In that year he moved to Missouri 
and bought 200 acres of uncultivated but promising land in Lmn county. 
Out of that unbroken and untamed expanse he has made his present 
farm, which is one of advanced development and fruitfulness, and is 
improved with good buildings and other structures needed for its 

purposes. 

For a number of years Mr. Good has been breedmg Percheron 
horses and high-grade jacks and mules for the markets, and also han- 
dling hogs in large numbers, breeding and feeding enough to enable 
him to ship two carloads a year on an average. The work incident to 
the cultivation of his farm and the proper management of his live-stock 
industry makes up his sole occupation, and, as he gives it his whole 
attention and performs it with intelligence and judgment, it brings him 
in good returns. 

He was married in 1883 to Miss Lulu Allen, a native of Andrew 
county, this state, where her parents were pioneers. Nine children 
have been born of the union, and all of them are living. They are: 
Andrew E., Ocie C, Mabel L., Rufus C, Allen V., Willis P., Carl E., 
Earl R. and Leland F. Ocie is now the wife of Lee Wilson, and Mabel 
is now Mrs. Sensintaffar. Both are residents of Linn county. The 
parents are members of the Methodist Episcopal church, and take an 
active part in its work, as they do in every other agency and under- 
taking designed to promote the welfare of their township and county. 



WILLIAM ROBBINS 

(Deceased) 
The late William Robbins, of Parson Creek township, although 
not one of the first pioneers of Linn county, was still an early one, and 
one of the most valued of his day, and gave promise of being one of 
the most useful men in his township. But his usefulness was cut off at 
the early age of thirty-four years and four months by a sudden and 
tragic death, which gave the sparsely settled region, as it was at that 
time, a great shock and made all its residents deplore the fact that he 
could not have been spared to fully develop his plans and realize the 
expectations his life of ten years among the people had awakened. 

Even in his short earthly career Mr. Robbins lived in many places 
and was active in the service of the public in them all. He was born 
in Westmoreland county, Pennsylvania, on June 24, 1834, and was a 
son of William and Nancy (Sloan) Robbins, also natives of the Key- 



744 HISTOKY OF LINN COUNTY 

stone State. The father was a farmer, and he too met with a tragic 
end, dying of cholera in the same year in which his son was born. His • 
offspring numbered seven, four sons and three daughters. Of the seven 
only two of the sons are now living, one being a resident of Pennsyl- 
vania and the other of Iowa. The family is of English descent, but the 
progenitors of the American branch came to this country at an early 
day and several generations of it lived in Pennsylvania. 

William Bobbins of this sketch lived for some years in his native 
county and his residence was then changed to Columbiana county, Ohio, 
where he attained his manhood. In spite of his orphanage in his 
infancy, he secured a good education, first attending the district schools 
in his locality and afterward pursuing a full course of instruction at 
Duff's College in Pittsburg, from which he was graduated in 1853. He 
taught school until the spring of 1854, then journeyed by team overland 
to California, being three months making the trip, and undergoing 
many hardships on the way. 

Mr. Bobbins remained two years in the Golden State, teaching 
school and working with a threshing outfit, and at the end of the 
period mentioned returned to his native state. But the West still 
wore a winning smile for him, and in 1858 he again turned his face in 
the direction of the setting sun, coming to Missouri and locating on a 
tract of 160 acres of wild land which he purchased — the land now 
occupied by his widow and one of her sons. He put up a log house in 
which to shelter his family and log stables for his livestock, and 
began industriously to break up his land and bring it into productive- 
ness. He lived on the land and did what he could to make a good 
farm out of it until his death on October 31, 1868, which resulted from 
the kick of a horse. 

He was married in Pennsylvania in 1858, on February 4, to Miss 
Martha C. Christy, a native of Allegheny county in that state. They 
had seven children, six of whom are now living: Elizabeth E., who is 
the wife of A. M. Ward, of Kirksville; Nannie A., the wife of Dennis 
Wood, of St. John, Kansas; Charles F., a Linn county farmer; Mar- 
garet C, now Mrs. Henry Smiley, of Wheeling, Livingston county; 
William C, who is living on the old homestead with his mother; and 
Bertie M., who is the wife of Edward Darling, also a resident of 
this county. , 

Mr. Bobbins was a frugal and industrious man, eager to make the 
best possible provision he could for his family. With this end in view, 
while developing his farm he also taught school in this county during 
the winter months. He was also a strong Union man, and in 1860 cast 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 745 

the only vote received by Abraham Lincoln for President in Parson 
Creek township. During the Civil War he served as first lieutenant of 
one of Linn county's companies of Missouri State Militia. On account 
of his loyalty to the Union his family suffered greatly from depreda- 
tions by raiders, being twice robbed of their live stock and provender, 
and subjected to other indignities, including threats of personal injury. 
At the time of their father's death the oldest of the children was 
less than ten years of age. The mother certainly deserves great credit 
for her care and good management in raising so large a number of 
children left in their tender years without the aid of a father's pro- 
viding and protecting hand. She was made in the heroic mold of 
womanhood for Avhich the noble race of pioneer women were dis- 
tinguished, however, and assumed her duties with resolute courage 
and performed them with great constancy and fidelity. She is a veri- 
table old-timer in this region, and recollects distinctly the days when 
deer stalked boldly into her dooryard and wild turkeys gobbled and 
strutted around her cabin, fearless of danger, and almost as if in 
defiance of the intrusion of a new and conquering race into their erst- 
while unquestioned domain. In those days*tlie nearest church was so 
far away that she and her husband could get to it never oftener than 
once a month, and frequently not that often. The nearest neighbor 
they had was a mile and a half across the prairie, and the schools 
were few, widely scattered and of the most primitive character. She 
is an admirable monument and reminder of a condition of life that 
has passed away forever, and is as widely and highly esteemed as any 
lady in the county. Her sons, as they grew up, developed and im- 
proved the farm of 240 acres, making it one of the best in the township. 



SIDNEY 0. PARSONS 

The life of this interesting business man began in Jefferson county, 
Iowa, on May 31, 1873, so that he is now thirty-nine years of age. But, 
although he must rank as a young man yet, he has seen a good deal of 
life in various ways, and has lived and labored usefully in three of 
the great states of the American Union, thirteen years in the state in 
which he was born, ten in Kansas and sixteen in Missouri, and his 
record is good and creditable to him in all, and especially so in this 
state, where he has passed nearly all his years since attaining his 
manhood. 

Mr. Parsons is one of the enterprising and progressive business 



746 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

men of Bucklin, this county, where he has lived continuously since 
coming to Missouri. He has also mingled in the public life of the com- 
munity with advantage to it and .considerable credit to himself. He 
is a son of John J. and Mary S. (Smith) Parsons, the former a native 
of Iowa and the latter of Ohio. They are both living and are prac- 
tically retired from active pursuits after having been engaged for 
years in zealous and profitable farming. 

Their son Sidney was reared to the age of thirteen in Iowa, then, 
in 1886, the family moved to Smith county, Kansas. In 1896 the son 
came to Linn county and located at Bucklin, where he has ever since 
been engaged in business and official duties, having served as city 
alderman from his ward and as city collector two terms. He is a 
Democrat in political relations and always active and effective in the 
service of his party, as a member of which he was chosen to the offices 
he has filled. 

On February 24, 1894, he was married in Smith county, Kansas, 
to Miss Rose Harper, of that county. They have two children, Bera 
M. and Harvey H. The father is a member of the Order of Odd Fel- 
lows and Modern Woodmen of America, and is zealous in his devotion 
to the Christian church, to which he has belonged for a number of 
years. He takes great interest in all the organizations to which he 
belongs, and his membership in them is warmly appreciated by their 
other members. He performs all his duties with the energy with 
which he carries on his business, and is enterprising and progressive 
in everything he undertakes. The residents of the city of his home 
esteem him highly, and he has shown himself to be well worthy of 
their regard, confidence and good will in every way. 



QUINCY R. BRUCE 

A veteran of the Civil War, and since "the battle flags were 
furled" an industrious and successful farmer, Quincy R. Bruce, of 
Jackson township, has well met the requirements of his manhood and 
his duty to his country in war and peace, and has the respect of all 
who know him for his fidelity in both, as well as for his uprightness 
as a man and his usefulness and progressiveness as a citizen. And 
this respect is based on thorough knowledge of him, for he has lived 
in this county more than half a century. 

Mr. Bruce is a native of Lawrence county, Ohio, where his life 
began on August 3, 1839. His parents were Vincent and Corinthia 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 747 

(Clark) Bruce, the former a native of Ohio and the latter of Vermont. 
The father was born in 1810, and was a stonemason and farmer by 
occupation, following these industries in his native state and after 
coming to Missouri and Linn ,county in 1859, bringing his five sons 
and their mother with him. The family located on unbroken land in 
Jackson township, and there the father died in 1867. The mother 
passed away July 17, 1891, at the age of ninety years. 

The father was an active and energetic Republican, always a zeal- 
ous worker for the interests of his party, and as its candidate he served 
in a number of township offices. In religious connection he was a 
devoted member of the Baptist church. The grandfather, William 
Bruce, was born in Virginia and married in West Virginia. He moved 
to Ohio in early married life, and was killed by a runaway slave. The 
great-grandfather was born and reared in Scotland. He came to this 
country about the time of the Revolution, and was killed at Marietta, 
Ohio, by Indians. 

The tragedy that darkened the lives of his forefathers has also 
been present in that of the subject of this sketch. He was reared to 
the age of twenty in his native state, then came with his parents to 
this county. The awful storm cloud of the Civil War was then darken- 
ing our sky, and two years later broke with all its fury on our unhappy 
country. Mr. Bruce was one of the first to volunteer for the defense 
of the Union, enlisting in 1861 in Company C, Eighteenth Missouri 
Infantry, in which he served three years and saw a great deal of active 
field work. He took part, with his regiment, in the battles of Shiloh, 
where Death rode rampant through the ranks of both contending 
armies; Corinth, Mississippi, where two savage engagements were 
fought; Buzzards' Roost, Peachtree Creek, the siege of Atlanta, and 
many minor conflicts. 

Mr. Bruce was discharged at St. Louis, Missouri, November 18, 
1864, on account of illness incurred in the service. He returned to his 
Missouri home and turned his attention to farming in this county, and 
here he has been engaged in the same pursuit ever since. He has been 
successful in his farming operations and through them has accumu- 
lated a comfortable estate. He has also taken an active and service- 
able interest in the political, civil, moral and educational affairs of 
the county, and his citizenship has been well appreciated by the people 
because of its elevated character and its usefulness. 

He was married in 1867 to Miss Mary J. Smith, a native of this 
county. Her parents, William B. and Maria (Gillespie) Smith, came 
to Linn county in 1841, and were therefore pioneers here. Mr. and 



748 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

Mrs. Bruce liave five children living: Cora, Archie, Daniel, Zella and 
Jesse. Cora is the wife of W. R. Phillips and Zella of A. M. Kilborn. 
Their father is a Republican in political relations and has always been 
active in the service of his party. On one occasion he was its nominee 
for the office of county judge. His religious connection is with the 
Baptist church. 



ALEXANDER GOOCH 

The son of a pioneer and himself entitled to all the reverence and 
distinction that pertains to the rank, Alexander Gooch, of Jackson 
township, enjoys the high esteem of all the residents of Linn county, 
not only on this account, but also because of his excellent personal 
character, his enterprise and progressiveness in the days of his great- 
est activitj^ and the long continued usefulness he has exhibited to every 
interest of this region, to which he was brought in childhood, and in 
which he has lived ever since and labored with fidelity and good 
results from his boyhood. 

Mr. Gooch was born in Chariton county, Missouri, on November 
23, 1835. He is a son of Rowland and Delia (Millsap) Gooch, the 
former a native of Madison county, Kentucky, and the latter of North 
Carolina. The father was born in 1813, and throughout his life from 
his young manhood he was engaged in tilling the soil. His parents, 
Gideon and Nancy (Leavell) Gooch, brought him to Missouri in 1829, 
and located in Chariton county, then almost wholly a wilderness. The 
trip was made with wagon teams, and had the usual succession of 
hardships, privations and perils. 

On his arrival in this state Gideon Gooch took up a tract of land 
in Chariton county, but after spending ten years in clearing this tract 
and reducing it to productiveness, he moved his family to Grundy 
county, where he ended his days. He was a soldier under General 
William Henry Harrison in the War of 1812, and took part in all the 
battles with the Indians fought by that distinguished warrior, remain- 
ing three years in the service in a regiment commanded by Colonel 
Dudley. At one time he was surrendered to the British with the rest 
of his regiment, but was in captivity only a short time. He and his 
wife were the parents of eight sons and six daughters, all now deceased. 

Their son, Rowland Gooch, the father of Alexander, grew to man- 
hood in Chariton county, and in 1841 came to Linn county, locating in 
Jackson township on land which he received from the government. 
He cleared this land, transformed it into a good farm and lived on it 



HISTORY OF LINI? COUNTY 749 

until his death, which occurred in 1899. His wife died in 1855, and 
he afterward married Mrs. Louisa Haller, the widow of Dr. Mailer 
By his two marriages he became the father of eight children, six of 
whom, five of the sons and one of the daughters, are still living He 
was a great hunter, and loved the sport. Deer and wild turkeys f ell m 
great numbers under his unerring aim, and not only kept his larder 
stored with good provisions but added to his fame as Nimrod of great 
expertness. He was a member of the Baptist church for many years 
and faithful in his devotion to it. 

Alexander Gooch grew to manhood in Jackson township and 
obtained a limited education at a school kept in a rude log school- 
house on his father's farm. He remained at home until he reached 
the ao-e of twenty and assisted in clearing the farm. In 1855 he began 
farming for himself on government land, which he took up m its wild 
state He broke up the soil, brought it to productiveness, put up all 
the improvements on it, and made of it the e^^cellent farm on which he 

now lives. ^ -r^ j t. xi • 

He was first married in 1854 to Miss Mary F. Bragg, and by this 
marriage became the father of eight children, five of whom are living: 
William J., John A., Harvey P., Mary E., and Howard B Their 
mother died in 1871, and in 1874 the father married Miss Mary E. 
Phillips, a native of Kentucky. Four children were born of this umon, 
Nova J. and Jerry P. are living. During the Civil War Mr. Gooch 
served as a member of the Home Guards. He was a justice of the 
peace for twenty years, and was school director for a number In 
religious connection he is a Baptist. He is well known and highly re- 
spected throughout the county. 



STEPHEN W. McCOLLUM 

A veteran of the Civil War, and since the close of that momentous 
sectional conflict, which so nearly rent our country asunder, for years 
an industrious and thrifty mechanic, and ever since a progressive and 
prosperous farmer, Stephen W. McCollum, of North Salem township, 
has a record of usefulness and fidelity to duty which would be credit- 
able to anv man. In times of peace he has forged the implements ot 
useful and productive industry; and in times of war he has shown that 
he knew how to handle the implements of aggressive and defensive 

warfare. -^^ , ^ -. 

Mr. McCollum is a native of Clay county, Kentucky, born on 



750 HISTORY OF LIXX COUNTY 

August 10, 1827. His parents, David and Rachel (Morris) McCoUum, 
were born and reared in South Carolina, and moved from that state to 
Kentucky early in their married life. The father was a blacksmith, 
and worked at his trade in his native state and that of his first adop- 
tion. In 1840 he brought his family to this state, and in 1843 to Linn 
county, and here the father continued to work at his trade. Both par- 
ents died in this county. They had twelve children, all of whom, also, 
are dead but their son Stephen W., and he is now nearly eighty-five 
years old. 

He w^as about fourteen years of age when the family moved to 
Missouri. Almost all educational advantages, as furnished by schools, 
were denied him, but Nature was his teacher, and she imbued him with 
a spirit of independence and self-reliance, which the additional lessons 
of experience, always thorough but sometimes severe, intensified and 
made practical. As soon as he w^as large and strong enough he began 
learning his trade as a blacksmith under the instruction of his father. 

On July 24, 1861, he enlisted in Company A, Eighteenth Missouri 
Volunteer Infantry, in defense of the Union, and he served actively 
and to his cost until he was honorably discharged from the army on 
February 6, 1865. At Marks' Mill he was taken prisoner, and during 
the next ten months he suffered all the horrors of one of the awful 
prison pens of the Confederacy. This experience was far worse, in 
his estimate, than the fourteen big battles in which he took part, 
including the engagement at Prairie Grove, Arkansas. He was 
wounded twice, once in the neck and once in the head. 

After his discharge from the army he returned to his home and 
resumed work at his trade. This he followed for a number of years. 
He has now been living retired from all active pursuits for some time, 
bearing his burden of years cheerfully and with considerable vigor 
and activity, and finding the evening of his long and useful life com- 
forted by the universal esteem bestowed upon him as a man and a 
patriarch by the people of his whole township and many other parts 
of Linn county. 

Mr. McCollum was married on February 11, 1849, to Miss Eliza- 
beth Boiling, a native of Missouri. They had five children, Benjamin 
F., William M., Mary, Robert and Shannon D. The mother of these 
children died on September 27, 1874, and the father took as his second 
wife Mrs. Margaret Bunch, a widow, who is still living. Among the 
few remaining links that connect Linn county of the present day with 
the dawn of its history, none is more generally, more sincerely or more 
deservedly revered than this venerable couple. They have lived long 



HlSTOIiY OF LIXN COUA'TY 751 

and lived serviceably here, and the people around them are proud 
of the high examples they have given of true and faithful Ameri- 
can manhood and womanhood. Mr. McCollum's grandfather, David 
McCoilum, was a native of South Carolina, a blacksmith by occupa- 
tion and an excellent citizen, like all the other members of the family. 
He died in Indiana. 



THOMAS S. LAMBERT 

Thomas S. Lambert is an industrious and prosperous farmer of 
Enterj)rise township in this county, who is a native here and has 
passed the whole of his life to this time (1912) within the limits of 
Linn county. He was born in the county on September 11, 1869, a son 
of Albert and Ruth (Stanford) Lambert, the former a native of Ohio 
and the latter of Kentucky. The father is a carpenter and farmer, and 
has lived in the county since 1862, when he came to this locality with 
Ms parents. He attained his manhood here and completed his educa- 
tion in the schools of this section. He is still living and actively 
engaged in his customary industries, and with results beneficial to 
himself and advantageous to his community. 

His father, Albert Lambert, moved to Missouri and Linn county 
from Ohio in 1865, as has been noted, and lived here. Of the children 
born to him two sons and one daughter are living. The maternal 
grandfather, Thomas Stanford, settled in this county in 1851 on land 
which he took up from the government, and which he broke up, im- 
proved and brought to an advanced stage of development and culti- 
vation. During the Civil War he was a soldier in the Union army for 
three years and saw a great deal of active service in the field and on 
the march. He is now living in the state of Oklahoma, in prosperous 
circumstances and is generally esteemed there as his memory is held 
in high respect here. 

After leaving school Thomas S. Lambert learned the carpenter 
trade and has since worked on a saw mill, operated a threshing outfit 
and been profitably engaged in farming. He is a handy man, can 
turn his abilities to many lines of usefulness, and has always found 
his capacity in demand. He is now following farming as his main 
occupation, although he still works at his trade when there is need of 
it to help some enterprise in the community along, to accommodate a 
neighbor, or to keep himself employed in times of leisure. He is well 
known throughout Enterprise township and in many other parts of 



752 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

the county as a good mechanic, a progressive farmer, a straightfor- 
ward and upright man and a progressive and public- spirited citizen. 
Mr. Lambert was married on December 25, 1887, to Miss Hannah 
Hannon, a native of this county. They have ten children: Henry, 
Charles, Loland, Fred, Loland, Minnie, Ethel, Goldie, Roy and Gladys. 
While the father's life to the present has been quiet and entirely 
unostentatious, it has been very useful. He has sought no prominence 
in social or political life, having no taste for either, and has taken no 
very active part in political controversies and contentions. He has 
done his duty with reference to public affairs with a good citizen's 
sense of responsibility, and been content, for the rest, to go his way 
along the path of daily requirements and without public notice. His 
fidelity to duty has not, however, gone unnoticed, and he is generally 
esteemed as an excellent man and citizen. 



ALBERT S. LAMBERT 

Prosperous in a worldly way, with his highly improved, well cul- 
tivated and richly productive farm of 440 acres; prominent in his busi- 
ness as an enterprising and progressive farmer, whose skill in culti- 
vating his land always brings him excellent returns for his labor, and 
standing well in the regard of the whole people of Linn county as a man 
and as a citizen, Albert S. Lambert, of Enterprise township, has found 
Linn county a good place for a man of industry, ability and self- 
reliance, and has never regretted that his parents brought him to this 
locality when he was but fifteen years old, although the severance of 
old ties when he left his native state might have been a source of deep 
regret and sorrow to him. 

Mr. Lambert was born in Washington county, Ohio, on March 10, 
1850, and is a son of Albert and Elizabeth (Edgerton) Lambert, also 
natives of Ohio, the former born in Belmont and the latter in Wash- 
ington county. The father's life began in 1814. He grew to manhood 
in his native state and afterward passed nearly thirty years as a farmer 
there. In 1864 he left Ohio for Missouri, but on the way stopped in 
Iowa, where he and his family spent one winter. In the spring of 
1865 they came on to Linn county and on arriving here located on an 
imimproved and unbroken track of land on Bear branch in Grants- 
ville township. This the father and sons cleared and improved into an 
excellent farm, and on it the father died in 1895. The mother lived 
until 1907, when she too passed away. 



/■ 



'^ 





EDWARD M. RANDOLPH 



HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 753 

They were the parents of twelve children, nine of whom are living. 
The father was a Quaker in his religious belief and pra,ctices. The 
grandfather, Albert Lambert, was a native of North Carolina and 
moved from that state to Ohio in his early manhood. He accompanied 
his son Albert and the rest of the family to this county, and here he 
passed the remainder of his days, dying at a good old age. 

Albert S. Lambert was fifteen years old when his parents brought 
him to this county, and here he completed the country school educa- 
tion he had begun in his native state. He remained at home and 
assisted his father in clearing, improving and cultivating the home 
farm until 1868, then, although he was but eighteen years old, he 
began working for himself in the department of labor to which he 
had been trained, starting in as a farmer on a small scale and gradu- 
ally enlarging his possessions and his operations as he prospered, 
clearing one piece of land after another and improving each in turn. 
He now has a farm of 440 acres, all cleared and the greater part of it 
under cultivation, and it is one of the best in the county. 

On June 27, 1867, Mr. Lambert was married to Miss Ruth Stand- 
ford, a daughter of Thomas Standford, a pioneer of this county who 
located here in 1851. Mr. Standford was in the Civil War two years, 
and on the Union side. He belonged to Company K. Seventh Missouri 
Volunteer Infantry. He is still living but is a gentleman well advanced 
in years. Mr. and Mrs. Lambert have had four children, three of whom 
are living: Thomas S. C, Lillie (Mrs. George Spencer) and Herman. 

In addition to his extensive farming operations Mr. Lambert has 
for some years been largely engaged in breeding registered Hereford 
cattle and Poland-China hogs. Both in the extent of his business in 
this respect and in the quality of his products he is one of the leading 
live stock breeders in the county. In his live stock enterprise as in his 
farming he gives his close personal attention to every detail, and omits 
nothing on his part necessary to secure the best results, and in his 
efforts toward this end he is entirely successful. 



EDWARD M. RANDOLPH 

The interesting subject of this brief review is practically the 
father of Merceline. While others Avere associated with him in found- 
ing the town, his was the controlling spirit in the enterprise and his 
the guiding hand in carrying it into effect and fruitfulness. He 
directed the laying out of what was at the time intended as a village, 
with hopes of its growth and development into a town of some size 



754 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

and pretensions during his life, doubtless, and with the possible dream 
of its becoming in time a city of magnitude and a potency of weight in 
the mercantile, industrial and civic life of the county and state. To 
wliat extent his hopes have been realized it remains with him to say. 
But the village he founded has far surpassed the expectations of others 
in the rapidity of its growth and the enterprise and sweep of progress 
it has developed. 

Mr. Randolph is evidently not satisfied with what has been 
achieved, or else he has been stimulated by that to still greater efforts, 
and his view has been expanded to wider possibilities. For he is still 
actively engaged in the real estate and loan business, and is adding 
every year to the size, beauty and importance of the city, the comfort 
and enjoyment of its residents, and its consequence among the munic- 
ipalities of Linn county and the state of Missouri. 

Mr. Randolph is a native of Marion county, Missouri, where his 
life began on December 5, 1838. He is a son of Thomas and Elizabeth 
(Anderson) Randolph, the former born in Louisiana and the latter in 
Maryland. The father was a planter in his native state, and came to 
Missouri in 1834. He located in Marion county and there conducted 
a farm for a number of years. From there he removed to Edina in 
Knox county, where he died in 1903, and where the mother passed 
away in 1906. They had six sons and one daughter, all of whom are 
deceased but three of the sons. 

Edward M. Randolph was reared and educated in Marion and 
Knox counties, and began his business career as a clerk in a general 
store at Newark in the latter, working there three years in that capac- 
ity. He then engaged in business for himself at Newark and Edina 
for a period of fifteen years. In addition he operated a mail route and 
express line between Edina and Quincy, Illinois, for a number of 
years. Afterward he served as circuit clerk of Knox county for six 
years, and was then associated with Senator L. F. Cottey in the real 
estate and loan business for some years, all the time adding new 
features to his experience and business knowledge, all of which have 
been of value to him ever since. 

In 1887 he came to where Marceline now stands and, in company 
with other persons, purchased 2,000 acres of land. On this he platted 
and laid out the town in the winter of 1887-8, devoting 600 acres to the 
townsite. He at once became a resident of the place and all his subse- 
quent years have been passed here. He still owns 500 lots of the 
original plat of the town, and 120 acres which have never been platted, 
in addition. He has put up fifty dwellings in the city besides several 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 755 

business blocks, among the latter the Metropolitan block, the Randolph 
block and the Commercial block, in the erection of the last of which 
other persons were associated with him. 

Mr. Randolph has been connected in a leading way with every 
enterprise of value in connection with the expansion and improvement 
of the city. He assisted in organizing the First National Bank, of 
which he is one of the original stockholders, and his ready mind has 
conceived and his skillful hand has helped to fashion many other 
institutions which are highly creditable and largely useful to the 
community. 

On December 10, 1861, Mr. Randolph was united in marriage with 
Miss Annie Hamilton, a native of Knox county, Missouri. They have 
no children. But have reared and educated a number, over a dozen 
in all. They maintain a very attractive home, however, which is a 
center of social culture and enjoyment and of refined, genuine and 
gracious hospitality. It is one of the popular resorts of the city, and is 
much frequented by the host of admiring friends of its occupants, who 
regard it as an ideal domestic establishment. 

Mr. Randolph has been a loyal and devoted member of the Demo- 
cratic party from the dawn of his manhood. Not, however, because he 
has ever been desirous of a political office of any kind, whether it came 
by election or appointment, but because he has an abiding faith in the 
principles of the party and their value in promoting good government. 
His church connection is with the Southern Methodists, and in fra- 
ternal life he is a member of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows. 

This enterprising, progressive and broad-minded man is now the 
last remaining landmark in the community of the time when what is 
now the city of Marceline was an unbroken expanse of prairie, the only 
one left of the forces which spoke the municipality into being. He is 
well known throughout the county of Linn and those which adjoin it, 
and he is as highly esteemed as he is widely known. For his life has 
been useful in a material way in what it has produced, and much more 
serviceable in its uprightness and the example of elevated citizenship 
which it has furnished. 



CLIFFORD R. HINTON 

Clifford R. Hinton, of Parson Creek township, this county, has a 
high reputation as an enterprising and progressive farmer and 
deserves it. He farms his land with intelligence and skill, and in a 
manner that makes every acre of it yield a proper return for the labor 



756 HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 

bestowed on it, and conducts all his affairs with system and prudence. 
This is a logical result of his circumstances and his training and meth- 
ods of procedure. He was bom on the farm he tills and has worked on 
it from his boyhood. He therefore knows it well and is familiar with 
its needs. He is a son of prudent parents who trained him in good 
business methods, and he studies his work with diligence and close and 
discriminating observation. 

Mr. Hinton came into being on March 20, 1873, the son of William 
H. and Mary A. (Ainsworth) Hinton, natives of the state of New 
York bom near the city of Rochester. The father was a miller and 
worked at his trade in his native state until after the Civil War began. 
In 186 — he enlisted in the Union army in a regiment of New York 
infantry, and he remained in the service about four years in all, seeing 
a great deal of the strife and taking part in several battles. 

After the close of the war he located in the oil fields of Pennsyl- 
vania, where he was employed until 1868. He then came to this county 
and bought a tract of wild prairie land of 180 acres, and this unbroken 
expanse he converted into a valuable and productive farm, improved 
it with commodious and comfortable buildings, made a profitable and 
desirable rural home of it and lived on it until his death, which 
occurred in 1887. The mother is still living and maintains her home 
at Meadville. 

The father built the Meadville flour mill. He operated it for some 
time, then disposed of his interest in it, and thereafter gave his whole 
attention to his farming. He was a Republican in political faith and 
allegiance, but he never filled a public office or took a very active part 
in political contests. He and the mother were married in the state of 
New York and became the parents of nine children, four of whom are 
living: Dayton L., who resides in the state of Oklahoma; Clifford R., 
the subject of this writing; Alda M., who is the wife of James Bailey 
and has her home at Meadville; and Sadie D., who lives with her 
mother. The grandfather of these children, Simeon Hinton, was born 
in England and died in New York state, where he was engaged in 
farming many years. 

Clifford R. Hinton grew to manhood on the farm he now owns and 
cultivates and obtained his education in the district school in the 
neighborhood. His whole life from boyhood to the present time (1912) 
has been passed on this farm and in its tillage except one year, during 
which he was in the grocery and hardware trade at Meadville. Mer- 
cantile life was not agreeable to him, and he did not tarry long at it. 



HISTORY OF LIXN COUNTY 757 

The farm had attractions no other line of work could equal for him, 
and he wisely returned to that. 

Mr. Hinton was married on November 12, 1902, to Miss Nannie 
Dicks, a daughter of Joseph and Mary (Knox) Dicks, natives of Mis- 
souri and residents of Linn county at the time of the marriage. The 
family located here in 1870, and here the mother died. The father is 
still living. Mr. and Mrs. Hinton have two children, their daughter 
Marjorie M. and their son Forest C. The father is a Freemason and 
the mother belongs to the Methodist Episcopal church. They are 
highly respected throughout the county, in all parts of which they are 
well and favorably known. 



HENRY F. EVERTSON 

This enterprising, progressive and successful farmer of Parson 
Creek township has passed something more than two-thirds of his life 
to the present time in this county, and during the whole of the period 
of his residence here has been actively connected with the leading 
industry of the locality, and since attaining his manhood a prominent 
force in carrying it on. He has made his impress on the region in the 
example of industry, thrift and good management he has given its 
people, and also in the results he has achieved in helping to build up 
its industrial, mercantile and commercial influence and importance. 

Mr. Evertson is a native of Adams county, Illinois, where his life 
began on January 22, 1867. His parents, William and Sarah (Murry) 
Evertson, were southerners, the father born in Virginia in 1823 and 
the mother in Tennessee. The father was a farmer in four states, and 
made an excellent record as such in each. From Virginia he moved to 
Ohio and lived there for a time, then came on westward to Adams 
county, Illinois, and there remained forty years. In 1881 he moved to 
this county and located near Fountain Grove. In that neighborhood 
he was actively and profitably engaged in farming for twenty years, 
and at the end of that period changed his residence to the farm now 
occupied by his son Henry, on which he died on January 26, 1904, at 
the age of eighty-one years. 

He and his wife were the parents of ten children, five sons and 
five daughters. Eight of the ten are living yet, but Henry is the only 
one of the number who resides in Linn county. His grandfather, Jere- 
miah Evertson, was born and reared in Virginia and passed all the 
earlier years of his life as a planter in that state. In middle age he 
moved to Illinois and the remaining years of his earthly activity were 



758 HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 

passed in cultivating the rich prairie soil of that state, on which he 
died at a good old age and in which his remains were laid to rest. 

Henry F. Evertson grew to the age of fourteen in Illinois and 
began his education there. In 1881 he came with his parents to this 
county, and here he has passed all his subsequent years. He com- 
pleted his education in the country schools of the county, and soon 
after doing so began life for himself as a farmer, which he has been 
ever since. In addition to his general farming operations, which are 
managed with skill and good judgment, he is extensively engaged in 
breeding Aberdeen- Angus cattle and Poland-China hogs. And as he 
is careful and attentive to all requirements in every detail of his busi- 
ness in both departments, his output is large and holds a high rank in 
the markets, local and general. 

On January 26, 1896, Mr. Evertson was united in marriage with 
Miss Flora M. Shiflett, a daughter of Harrison and Rebecca (Lively) 
Shiflett, who became residents of Linn county in 1887. The mother 
died here in 1900, as did the father some years later. Mr. Evertson is 
a wide-awake and progressive citizen, and is held in high favor and 
enjoys a widespread popularity because of his public spirit and enter- 
prise in regard to public improvements and everything that helps to 
promote the substantial and enduring welfare of the township and 
county of his home. He also takes an earnest interest and an active 
part in the fraternal life of his community as a member of the Inde- 
pendent Order of Odd Fellows. His wife belongs to the Methodist 
Episcopal church, which he also attends and helps to support. He is 
an excellent farmer, an aggressive citizen for the public good, a genial 
and obliging man socially and a most estimable force in his locality in 
every way. 



JOHN B. WALBY 



Beginning life for himself at the age of eighteen as a Union soldier 
in the Civil War, and since the close of that memorable and moment- 
ous sectional conflict actively engaged in farming on a liberal scale 
and in an enterprising and progressive manner, John B. Walby, of 
Parson Creek township, this county, has been from his youth a valu- 
able contributor to the greatness, wealth and progress of the United 
States and a worthy exemplar of its best and most serviceable citi- 
zenship. 

Mr. Walby was bom in Quincy, Illinois, on January 10, 1844, and 
is a son of Benjamin and Elizabeth (Hannah) Walby, the former a 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 759 

native of London, England, and the latter of the state of Indiana. The 
father was a butcher by occupation, as was his father before him, 
whose name was also Benjamin Walby. The grandfather moved his 
family to the United States about the year 1837, crossing the ocean in 
a sailing vessel. On arriving in this county the family came direct 
to Quincy, Illinois, and there the grandfather engaged in butchering, 
carrying on a profitable business. He invested his earnings in land in 
the county around him to good advantage, and passed the remainder 
of his days in Quincy. 

He and his wife were the parents of four children, two sons and 
two daughters, all of whom are now deceased. Their son Benjamin, 
the father of John B., followed his trade and also engaged in farming 
in Adams county, Illinois, until 1867, when he brought his family to 
Missouri and purchased railroad land in Livingston county. He cleared 
this land, improved the farm, brought it to an advanced stage of pro- 
ductiveness, and then sold it, and bought other land near Spring Hill 
in the same county. On this second farm he died in 1901, having sur- 
vived by twenty-four years the mother, who died in 1877. They had 
four sons and three daughters, but all of the seven have died except 
three of the sons. The parents belonged to the Baptist church, and the 
father was a devoted member of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows. 

John B. Walby obtained his education in the district schools of 
Adams county, Illinois, and remained at home with his parents until 
he reached the age of eighteen years in 1862. He then enlisted in 
defense of the Union in the Seventy-eighth Illinois Volunteer Infantry^ 
but his connection with that regiment was short, as he was discharged 
soon after his enlistment on account of illness incurred in the service. 
Late in 1863 he again enlisted for a term of one year, becoming a mem- 
ber of the One Hundred and Fifty-fifth Illinois Infantry, and in this 
regiment he served out nearly all of his term of enlistment. 

He saw active field service at Louisville, Kentucky, and in the bat- 
tles of Nashville, Murfreesboro (Stone River), Lookout Mountain and 
other engagements in Tennessee and Georgia. After his final discharge 
from the army he returned to his Illinois home and remained there 
until 1867, when he came to Missouri with his parents and located with 
them in Livingston county. He lived in that county until 1891, then 
moved to Linn county and bought a farm. This he improved and then 
sold a part of it, after which, in partnership with his son, he bought the 
farm they now own, live on and work. This was also unimproved 
when they became possessed of it, but their systematic, well-applied 



760 HISTOEY OF LIXN COUNTY 

and skillful labor has transferred it into a model farm and made it 
very valuable. 

Mr. Walby was married in 1867 to Miss Catherine McCeary, a 
native of Pennsylvania. They have had seven children, six of whom 
are living: James A., John S., Rosella E., Wesley A. R., Lydia C. and 
Lavina M. Rosella is now the wife of R. U. Rice, of this county; 
Lydia C. married E. H. Walker; Lavina M. is the wife of Floyd Wright. 
The mother died in 1908 after forty-one years of useful domestic life 
and faithful attention to the duties of her home. 

Mr. Walby is a member of that fast-fading organization, the Grand 
Army of the Republic, and he and his wife belonged to the Christian 
church while she lived, and he still adheres to it and his devotion to 
its welfare. He saw this part of northern Missouri when it was in the 
infancy of its civilized life, with all its possibilities speaking volumes 
of promise but as yet yielding almost nothing to the service of man- 
kind. He has helped to bring it to its present state of development and 
fruitfulness in material products, raise it to the height it occupies in 
moral and mental force and culture, and augment its commercial 
activity and social influence to their present magnitude. At every 
stage of the advance he has done his part intelligently, cheerfully and 
with the utmost fidelity, and the residents of this part of the state 
esteem him highly for the service he has rendered it and the admirable 
type of citizenship he has shown. 



BENJAMIN S. COTTER 

Born, reared and educated in Linn county, Missouri, and through- 
out his life from the dawn of his manhood to the present time (1912), 
except a period of three years, during which he lived in western Mon- 
tana, one of the enterprising, progressive and successful farmers of 
Locust Creek township, Benjamin S. Cotter has a hold on the esteem 
and good will of the people of all classes and conditions few men, if 
any, have ever surpassed him in. He is modest and unassuming not- 
withstanding his popularity, and this fact adds to its extent and hearti- 
ness, for, while his merit has been demonstrated to the residents of 
his township and county, he seems himself to be unconscious of it or 
the effect it has produced. 

Mr. Cotter's life began in Linn county in 1869, and he is a son of 
William E. and Mary E. (Oxley) Cotter, the former a native of Ten- 
nessee and the latter of Indiana. The father was born in 1835, and was 



HISTORY OF LIXN COUXTY 761 

reared on a farm. When he reached man's estate he became a farmer 
himself. When he was a child the family came to Missouri and located 
on a tract of wild land south of the village of Browning which the 
father bought. Some years afterward he moved to another south of 
Linneus, on which he died in 1908. The mother passed away in this 
county. 

They were the parents of seven daughters and five sons, and of 
the twelve eight are living. During the Civil War the father served 
three years in the Union army in the Twenty-third Missouri Volunteer 
Infantry. 

In politics he was an unwavering Republican and rose to a posi- 
tion of leadership in his i^rty in this county. He kept alive the 
memories of the war, Avithout any of its bitterness of feeling, by active 
membership in the Grand Army of the Eepublic, and his religious con- 
nection was with the Methodist Episcopal church, of which he was a 
devout and consistent member, belonging to it for many years. His 
father, Stephen V. Cotter, was born in Tennessee and died in this 
county, where he made himself locally famous as a great hunter. He 
was united in marriage with a Miss Fair, who died in this county also. 

Benjamin S. Cotter was reared in Linn county and educated in its 
district schools. From his youth he has been a farmer in the county 
except for a period of three years, during which he was in western Mon- 
tana, as has been stated. He has been successful in his farming opera- 
tions and won from the soil a substantial competency, and this is not 
surprising, for his work has been directed by intelligence and good 
judgment and prosecuted with industry and skill. 

In 1901 he was united in marriage with Miss Bessie Forman, a 
daughter of Maj. Luther T. Forman, who was born in Bourbon county, 
Kentucky, on August 21, 1821. Her mother was his third wife, and 
before her marriage to the major she was Mrs. Emily Graham. The 
major was prominent on the Union side in the Civil War, and in Repub- 
lican politics after the memorable conflict closed. During the closing 
years of his life he was a Greenbacker in politics. He also was a great 
hunter in his time. In religious aflBliation he and his wife were mem- 
bers of the Christian church. 

Mr. and Mrs. Cotter have one child, their son Lee R., who is now a 
promising student in the public school near his home. In fraternal 
relations Mr. Cotter is a member of the Order of Odd Fellows and the 
Yeomen of America. He takes an earnest and appreciative interest in 
the proceedings of these fraternities, and his membership is highly 
valued in both of them by their other members. The interests of his 



762 HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 

township and county have his intelligent and helpful attention, too, 
and every worthy undertaking for their promotion has his energetic 
and serviceable support. In all the duties of citizenship he is faithful 
and true, always performing with exactness according to his sense of 
right, and with a view to getting the best results for his community. 
As a man he is representative of all that is best Linn county manhood, 
and the people in all parts of the county who know him so regard him. 



HENRY SMITH 



For a continuous period of thirty-on^ years this prominent and 
progressive farmer and influential citizen of Baker township has occu- 
pied and cultivated the farm which he now owns and lives on in the 
neighborhood of St. Catharine, this county, and his life has been an 
open book before the people around him without a stain on any of its 
pages. He has been a resident of the county since 1864, ,coming hither 
immediately after his discharge from the Union army after three years' 
service during the Civil War, in which he experienced all the horrors 
of military strife, including a serious wound received during the 
engagements around Vicksburg. 

Mr. Smith is a native of Massachusetts, born in the city of Lynn 
on March 29, 1837. His parents, Hiram and Martha (Pendergrass) 
Smith, were also New Englanders, the former born at Gilford near 
Lake Winnipiseogee in New Hampshire and the latter in Massachu- 
setts. The father was a carpenter and a stair builder, and never left 
the section of the country in which his life began. He was married in 
Massachusetts and then took up his residence in that state, where he 
passed the remainder of his days. The mother also died in that state. 
They were the parents of one son and two daughters, all now deceased 
but the son. The grandfather, Paul Smith, was bom and reared in 
Scotland, and came to the United States a young man. He took up his 
residence in New England and passed the rest of his life in that part 
of the country. 

Henry Smith grew to manhood in his native city and obtained his 
education in its public schools. He learned the carpenter trade and 
worked at it a short time, then picked up the craft of a wheelwright 
and blacksmith and followed that at intervals for thirty years. In 1861 
he enlisted in Company E, Seventh Missouri Volunteer Infantry, in 
which he served three years and took part in many important battles, 
among them the conflicts at Port Gibson, Raymond, Jackson, Champion 



HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 763 

Hill and the siege of Vicksbnrg, all in Mississippi, and many minor 
engagements there and elsewhere. He held the rank of second lieu- 
tenant for a time and was then promoted to that of first lieutenant, with 
which he was mustered out of the service. During the siege of Vicks- 
burg, as has been stated above, he received a serious wound, being shot 
in his right breast. This disabled him for some months, but he was 
able to return to his regiment without a very long absence. 

In 1864, having some knowledge of Missouri and Linn county from 
a previous residence here, he returned to this county and located here 
permanently, and in 1879 he took possession of the farm he now owns 
and cultivates, and on which he has made his home ever since. He has 
carried on a general farming industry with energy and enterprise, till- 
ing his land with intelligence and good judgment, and has made his 
work profitable to him in a worldly way and serviceable in winning the 
respect, approval and good will of the people around him and in other 
parts of the county. 

On January 8, 1867, Mr. Smith was married to Mrs. Rachel J. 
Peavler, a widow. Ten children have been born of their union, six of 
whom are living: Mary, now the wife of Robert Richardson; Martha, 
now Mrs. J. M. Logan; Margaret, who married F. Rauer and has her 
home with him in North Salem township; and William H., Charles 

and Thomas. 

The head of the household is a Republican in his political rela- 
tions, but, although he is a firm believer in the principles of his party 
and always supports them and its candidates loyally, he has not been 
an active political worker, and has never sought or desired a political 
office. Fraternally he is connected with the Grand Army of the Repub- 
lic and takes a cordial interest in the meetings of the post in which he 
holds his membership. He is well known in the county and everywhere 
highly esteemed. 



SAMUEL H. LINHART 

This highly esteemed citizen of Linn county and model farmer of 
Enterprise township, who is also actively, extensively and profitably 
engaged in breeding horses and cattle of superior strains, and owns 
500-acre farm, has been a resident of the township in which he now 
lives for more than fifty-four years, and during the greater part of the 
time has been energetically engaged in one of the leading industries 
of the county, considerably to his own advantage, and also in ways 



764 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

highly beneficial to his township and Linn county in general. He was 
a lad of eleven years when his j)arents moved to the county, and even 
then was able to render good service on the parental homestead. 

Mr. Linhart was born in Allegheny county, Pennsylvania, on 
November 3, 1847. His parents, Adam and Elizabeth (Brown) Linhart, 
were also natives of that state and engaged in farming there. In 1858 
they moved to Missouri and Linn county, and located on a tract of 
unbroken land in Enterprise township. The father broke up his land 
with ox teams, replaced the wild growth of ages with the products of 
systematic husbandry, and transformed the virgin expanse into a fine 
farm and a very comfortable and attractive home. 

They were the parents of eight sons and five daughters. Five of 
the sons and four of the daughters are still living. Five of the sons of 
the household fought in defense of the Union during the Civil War in 
Missouri regiments, and all made good records for valor on the field, 
endurance on the march and fidelity to duty in every way. The father 
was first a Whig and afterward a Republican in his political relations, 
and in religious connection both he and the mother were members of 
the Methodist Episcopal church. The grandfather was born in Ger- 
many and the grandmother in England. 

Their son Samuel grew from the age of eleven years to manhood 
in this county, and completed in its country schools the education he 
had begun in those of the county of his nativity. He assisted his father 
in clearing and breaking up the farm and drove five yoke of oxen when 
fourteen years old to break up the sod, and aided in its cultivation until 
he reached the age of twenty-one. He then set up as a farmer on his 
own account on the farm which he now owns and lives on. Like his 
father, he began on virgin soil, and like him also, he has transformed 
a tract of 500 acres of the wilderness into a garden and made it fruitful 
with all the products and fragrant with all the flowers of systematic 
farming in this part of the country. 

In connection with his farming operations he has been engaged 
for a number of years in breeding high grade cattle and horses, and by 
his sedulous care, broad intelligence and striking enterprise in the busi- 
ness, has won a place among the most prominent and successful stock 
breeders in northeastern Missouri, as well as high rank as a progres- 
sive, successful and up-to-date farmer in touch with the latest develop- 
ments in the business, and studious of its advancement and judicious 
in the application of all he learns on the subject. Also educated his 
children in the State Normal at Kirksville, Missouri. 

On March 30, 1873, Mr. Linhart was married to Miss Virginia M. 



HISTORY OF LINX COUNTY 765 

Safreed, a native of Jackson county in what is now West Virginia. 
Her father, Samuel Safreed, died in that state, and her mother brought 
the family to Missouri and reared and educated her children in this 
state and died in Oklahoma, eighty-four years old. Mr. and Mrs. Lin- 
hart have seven children living: Edith R., who is now the wife of E. E. 
Harris; Alfa J., who is the wife of Dr. J. W. Dodson; Clinton C, who 
is a Dr. A. S. 0.; Ernest W., Dr. A. S. 0.; Jennie M., who married Dr. 
W. E. Atherton and has her home with him in Missouri; Walter T., 
Normal student; and Ephonzo, Dr. A. S. O. 

Mr. Linhart trains with the Republican party in political affairs 
and is a firm believer in the principles of his party. But he is not a 
very active partisan, and has never been an offlce seeker. He and his 
wife are devoted members of the Methodist Episcopal church, and in 
the congregation to which they belong he has served as superintendent 
of the Sunday school and his wife as a teacher in it for a number of 
years. Both are well known all over the county, and both sfre highly 
esteemed by all classes of its residents, the husband as a progressive, 
enterprising and public-spirited citizen, and the wife as a conscien- 
tious, industrious, intelligent and widely serviceable lady, true to her 
duty in every way, and a force for good in her community through her 
zeal and activity and the fine example of sterling womanhood which 
she gives to all who know her. 



PHILIP FOX 



To no class of its foreign population does this coimtry owe more 
than to that resourceful, all-conquering and thrifty element that has 
come from Germany. Wherever representatives of the German people 
locate, in this land or any other, they make the most of their oppor- 
tunities and the locality in which they settle soon feels the quickening 
impulse of their quiet but persistent industry, and soon shows the bene- 
ficial results of their presence and the influence on others which they 
exert. 

Philip Fox, one of the leading farmers and live stock men of North 
Salem township, this county, is a fine representative of the race, and 
his successful and useful career in his home locality is strong proof of 
the sturdiness and fruitfulness of the race to which he belongs by 
nativity and training. He was born in Germany near the Rhine on 
November 26, 1852, and there, also, his parents, George P. and Ann E. 
(Kuhn) Fox, first saw the light of this world and passed the whole of 



766 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

tlieir lives. The father was a farmer there and prospered in his busi- 
ness according to the standards of the country, and, at the end of long 
lives of toil and fidelity to every duty, there he and his wife laid down 
their trust and were gathered to their fathers, the descendants of many 
generations of residents in the neighborhood. They were the parents 
of one son and two daughters, but their son Philip is the only one of 
their offspring living in the United States. 

Philip Fox grew to the age of seventeen in his native land and 
learned the baker's trade there. In 1869 he went to London, and there 
he worked at his trade until 1872. In that year he came to the United 
States and journeyed westward to this state, taking up his residence 
in Shelby county, where he passed five years working at his trade at 
intervals, but on farms most of the time, and then spent three years in 
Adair county in the same occupations, not making any considerable 
amount in the way of wages, but working hard, living frugally and 
saving his earnings for a more ambitious and productive course in life. 

In 1880 he came to Linn county and bought a tract of railroad land 
in North Salem township, and from the service of others he at once 
transferred his energies to the promotion of his own welfare, breaking 
up his wild purchase and making it productive. He has improved his 
farm with good buildings and fences, cultivated it carefully, wisely 
and energetically, and made it all pay tribute to his enterprise and 
industry. As he prospered he made additional purchases until at one 
time he owned 490 acres, a large part of which is still in his possession. 
On this land he has followed general farming extensively, and has also 
given attention to feeding live stock for the markets with success and 
on a considerable scale. 

On May 8, 1878, Mr. Fox was married to Miss Mary F. Thudium, 
a daughter of Juhn G. and Christina (Straus) Thudium, a sketch of 
whom will be found in this volume. One child has been born of the 
union, a daughter named Annie D., who is now the wife of H. C. 
Spencer, an esteemed farmer of Linn county and one of the leading 
citizens of the locality of his home. 

Mr. Fox belongs to the Masonic order fraternally, is a German 
Lutheran in religious affiliation and a Republican in his political rela- 
tions. He takes an active interest in local public affairs, but not as a 
politician or candidate for public office, but solely for the purpose of 
aiding in promoting the welfare of his township and county and the 
good of their residents. He has a good farm, for he has made it one, 
and is a stockholder in the Bank of Purdin. His citizenship is of an 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 767 

elevated and useful character, and the people around him estimate him 
at his true value, which is a high one. 



DANIEL THUDIUM 

An excellent farmer and a good school teacher, Daniel Thudium, 
of Linn county, Missouri, has shown himself to be a man of capacity 
and progressiveness in two lines of useful endeavor, in each of which 
there is plenty of room for intellectual and business ability of a high 
order, and in both of which considerable force of character and self- 
reliance are necessary to win any considerable degree of success. Mr. 
Thudium has won this in both, and he has thereby displayed the needed 
characteristics. He has also established himself in the regard and good 
will of the people of the county as a first-rate citizen and a square and 
upright man. 

Mr. Thudium was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on October 
23, 1851, and is the second son and child of John G. and Christina 
(Straus) Thudium, a sketch of whom will be found in this work, in 
which the family history is given at some length. While Daniel was 
still in his infancy the parents moved to Wisconsin, and in 1856, when 
he was but five years old, they brought their family to this state and 
located in Linn county. Here he grew to manhood and obtained such 
an education as the primitive country schools of the time could give 
him. They were in keeping with the condition of this region in the 
period of his boyhood and youth, full of the proper spirit, but lacking 
development and facilities for the best work they aimed at, but still 
tending upward, like the people who supported them, and making the 
best showing they could. 

Mr. Thudium assisted in clearing and breaking up his father's 
wild domain, remaining at home until he reached the age of twenty, 
and then set up as a farmer for himself. He repeated on another tract 
of unbroken prairie the performance of his father, his brothers and 
himself had worked out on the old family homestead. While waiting 
for his land to come to fruitfulness he taught school in the winter 
months for a number of years, and his reputation as a schoolmaster is 
still a good and strong one. 

In 1882 he moved to the farm he now owns and occupies, or a part 
of it, which was also wild prairie, and which he has transformed into 
a very valuable and highly productive and well improved farm. Nature 
did her part in making the land rich and fertile, and he has done his by 



768 HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 

accepting her bounty on her own terms of hard labor and good man- 
agement. The bargain has been kept on both sides with the utmost 
fidelity. Mr. Thudium has cultivated his land with sedulous industry 
and skill and it has responded to his efforts with ever increasing gener- 
osity in the returns it has yielded. 

Mr. Thudium was married on January 4, 1872, to Miss Sarah E. 
Hill, a daughter of Willis D. Hill. He was born and reared in North 
Carolina and became a resident of Linn county in 1856. Of the nine 
children born of the union seven are living: Charles W., Clara E., who 
is now the wife of A. J. Nester; Edward T., John W., Estella, now the 
wife of W. Warren; Benjamin H., and Rosie L., who is the wife of 
Lowel Pace. 

General farming and raising live stock have been the occupation 
of this enterprising man from his youth. He was also engaged in buy- 
ing and shipping of live stock for the last thirty years. He now owns 
880 acres of land and cultivates the greater part of it. He is a Repub- 
lican in politics, an Odd Fellow in fraternal life and a member of the 
Christian church in religious connection. He is public-spirited and 
progressive in reference to public affairs, just as he is in reference to 
his own interests, and always ready to do his part to advance the im- 
provement of his township and county. His wife died in 1909, and thus 
deprived him of the help of an excellent woman. 



BENJAMIN S. WILSON 

Although not a native of Linn county, Benjamin S. Wilson, one of 
the most progressive and prosperous farmers of Marceline township, 
began the battle of life for himself as a tiller of its fertile and fruitful 
soil, and has been one of its leading agriculturists ever since. He has 
lived on the farm he now occupies and cultivates since 1876, and during 
the thirty-five years of his ownership of it has steadily improved it, 
increased its productiveness and value, added to its attractiveness and 
enhanced it in every way, until now it is one of the best in the township. 

Mr. Wilson was born in Marshall county, Tennessee, on December 
31, 1844, and is the son of Samuel and Martha (Weaver) Wilson, 
natives of North Carolina, where the father was born in 1817. He was 
a farmer in Tennessee, whither he went with his parents in early life, 
and continued his operations as such in that state until 1854. In that 
year he moved to Iowa, but remained only a few months, changing his 
residence from Iowa to Macon county, Missouri, before the end of the 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 769 

year. In Macon county he entered government land south of Laplata, 
on which he lived until 1865. He then moved to Henry county, this 
state, where he died in 1886. His wife died there in 1885. They were 
the parents of five sons and two daughters, and of the seven children 
born to them six are living. 

The paternal grandfather, Samuel Wilson, emigrated from North 
Carolina to Tennessee and died in Marshall county in that state. Ben- 
jamin S. Weaver, the maternal grandfather, was a soldier in the War 
of 1812 and also in the Black Hawk Indian War of 1831-32. He bore 
himself bravely and serviceably in each, and made an excellent record 
as a valiant, capable and intelligent soldier, with fidelity for every duty 
and readiness to face the foe at any moment, no matter what the 

hazard. 

Benjamin S. Wilson was ten years old when his parents moved to 
Macon county, Missouri, and there he completed his growth to man- 
hood and obtained the greater part of his education, attending the dis- 
trict schools in the neighborhood of his father's farm for the purpose. 
He assisted his father in clearing the homestead and remained at home 
with his parents until he came of age. He then came to Linn county 
and began farming on his own account, purchasing and locating on the 
farm which is still his home. 

On March 1, 1866, he was united in marriage with Miss Julia 
Stuart, a resident of this county at the time of her marriage. She 
became the mother of eight children by this union, and three of her 
offspring are living: Laura E., now the wife of H. H. Sportsman, of 
Marceline; Martha, who is now Mrs. Jones and lives in Oklahoma; and 
John S., who is a traveling salesman. Their mother died in 1882, and 
in 1885 the father married a second time, uniting himself on this occa- 
sion with Miss Flora B. Johnson, also a resident of this county. They 
have had five children, all of whom are living: Vonia, Claude, Urban, 
Ruth and Russell. All of them are residents of Linn county. 

Mr. Wilson served in the state militia for three months during the 
Civil War. He is a pronounced Democrat in political faith and alle- 
giance, and has been township trustee and filled other local offices. His 
fraternal connection is with the Masonic order, of which he has been 
a member many years. In all parts of the county he is favorably 
known and highly respected as a man, a citizen and an enterprising 
and representative farmer, warmly and helpfully interested in public 
improvements and zealous in behalf of everything that contributes to 
the welfare of his township and the county at large, or the comfort and 
convenience of their residents. 



770 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

JOHN G. THUDIUM 

The wonderful thrift and resourcefulness, the firm inflexibility of 
purpose, the persevering and all-conquering industry, and the power to 
make the most of every circumstance, which characterize the people 
of the German empire, have been the theme of orator and poet on 
many occasions and in many latitudes. Their armies have been at 
times the terror of Europe. Their statesmanship has won the admira- 
tion of mankind. In latter days the products of their factories fill the 
markets of the world. Wherever they camp the wilderness blossoms 
as the rose, and whatever they put their hands to grows and flourishes. 
The results which follow their eft'orts in aggregation, are seen in proper 
proportion in their individual enterprise, the underljdng principles 
being the same in each case and tending to and working out the same 
end, in small or great achievements. 

One of the best illustrations of what the basic elements of the Ger- 
man character and make-up can accomplish is furnished in the career 
and the achievements of John G. Thudium of North Salem township in 
this county. He is now one of the oldest residents of Linn county, but 
even at his advanced age he is still enterprising and progressive, in 
what he sees if not so much in what he does, or no longer attempts. 
For his day of toil, or trade, or ambition is over. The din of traffic and 
of worldly strife has no longer magic for his ear. The myriad footfall 
on the city's stony walks is but noise or nothing to him now. His 
day's work has been accomplished, and he has come home to enjoy the 
splendor of the sunset, the milder glories of late evening. What is to 
be said of him is therefore almost altogether retrospective, but it is 
none the less striking and instructive in a high degree. 

Mr. Thudium was born in Wurtemberg, Germany on April 12, 
1823. He is a son of Daniel and Christina (Blessing) Thudium, natives 
of the same province. The father was a truck gardener. He came to 
the United States in 1880, or about that time, and located in St. Louis, 
where he passed the remainder of his days. But before leaving his 
native land he served his time in the German army. The mother died 
in Germany in 1835. Of her offspring of two sons and two daughters, 
John G. is now the only one living. Sometime after the death of his 
first wife the father married a second, and by this marriage became the 
father of one son and one daughter, both of whom are now deceased. 
The grandfather and great-grandfather both passed their lives and 
died in Wurtemberg. 

John G. Thudium grew to the age of fourteen at home and attended 



HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 771 

school. He then served three years' appremiceship to a shoemaker, 
and after that did journey work in his native land for six years. In 
1847 he decided to come to the United States, and took passage on a 
sailing vessel, which was fifty-six days making the trip across the 
stormy Atlantic. He landed at New York and went at once from there 
to Philadelphia, where he remained six years. During two years of the 
time he was in business for himself and did a great deal of work mak- 
ing shoes for the soldiers who were enlisting for the Mexican War, for 
which the government was then making ready. 

While living in Philadelphia Mr. Thudium was married in 1849 to 
Miss Christina Strauss, who was also a native of Germany. In 1852 
he moved to Dodge county, Wisconsin, and bought a tract of land. On 
that he followed farming for four years, then, in 1856, came to Linn 
county, Missouri, and settled on the farm which he now owns and 
occupies. This was government land, wholly unimproved and virgin 
to the plow. It was a tract of 160 acres, and on it Mr. Thudium built 
a log cabin and began to transform it into a home for himself and his 
family. He improved this tract and made it productive, then bought 
more land, and kept adding to his possessions by successive purchases 
until he became the owner of about 2,000 acres. On this vast expanse 
he carried on general farming and engaged in raising cattle on an ex- 
tensive scale, and made both lines of business pay. 

But he was not wholly absorbed in his own affairs. He had a warm 
and cordial interest in the land of his adoption, and during the Civil 
war took his place and rendered what service he could in defense of 
the Union in the Missouri State Militia. He is a Republican in politics 
and a member of the German Lutheran church. In addition to his ex- 
tensive holdings of farming lands, he is also a stockholder in the 
Wheeler Savings Bank of Brookfield and the Bank of Purdin. He came 
to this county without means of any kind in the way of capital, and he 
is now one of the wealthy men of Linn county, and his estate is due 
altogether to his own industry, thrift and excellent business capacity 
and management. 

Mr. Thudium and his wife are the parents of seven children, all of 
whom are living. They are: Henry, Daniel, Mary, the wife of Philip 
Fox, a sketch of whom will be found in this volume; John, Sarali, the 
wife of Alexander Bailey; Matilda, who is living at home with her 
father; and George. Their mother died in March, 1910. The father is 
now on the way to the ninetieth anniversary of his birth, and his vigor 
and activity shame many men of far fewer years. The storms of life 
have not shaken his firm foundations and its cares and burdens have 



772 HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 

not much bowed his frame or at all soured his nature. He is a genial, 
kindly, lovable old gentleman, whom everybody esteems and all Linn 
county venerates for his genuine worth. 



ASA 0. McKINNEY 

Standing well in business circles all over the county, and held in 
high regard as a man and citizen, Asa 0. McKinney, hardware mer- 
chant and dealer in farming and other implements, who conducts the 
only business of the kind in New Boston, has used his time and oppor- 
tunities in life to the present time (1912) to good advantage for him- 
self and also greatly to the benefit of the community in which he lives, 
which has been his home from his birth, and the scene of all his useful 
activity. 

Mr. McKinney 's life began on a farm near the townsite of New 
Boston on February 2, 1879. He is a son of Charles and Maggie 
(Diedle) McKinney, the former a native of New York and the latter of 
Germany. After many years of faithful and profitable toil on his farm 
the father retired from agricultural pursuits and moved into New Bos- 
ton, where he kept a drug store during the rest of his life, which ended 
in 1910. He was prominent and successful as a farmer, and he was also 
prosperous and held in high rank in his business as a druggist. The 
mother is still living at New Boston, where her two sons, the only sur- 
vivors of her four children, are both in business and both doing well. 

During the Civil War the father was a soldier on the Union side 
of the great sectional conflict, serving in Company C, First United 
States Reserve Corps, Missouri Home Guards, of which his father was 
captain. He was in this company seven months, and was engaged 
mainly in doing guard duty. At the end of the period mentioned he 
was discharged, and immediately re-enlisted, joining the Tenth Mis- 
souri Cavalry, but illness prevented his going into the service with that 
regiment. 

Asa 0. McKinney was reared and educated in this county, and 
after leaving school farmed for himself for five years. He then bought 
his present business, and to this he has given his attention ever since, 
studiously, progressively and with conquering enterprise. He has 
built up a large and active trade, and in doing so has established him- 
self in the confidence and good will of the people as a straightforward, 
upright and conscientious merchant, as well as one who is master of 
his undertaking in all its features and details. He took charge of the 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 773 

business in 1907, and he has made steady progress in it from then 

until now. 

On November 23, 1901, Mr. McKinney was united in marriage with 
Miss Daisy Davis, a native of Macon county, Missouri, and the daugh- 
ter of Edgar and Eliza (Greenstreet) Davis, long residents of that 
county and well esteemed in all parts of it. Mr. and Mrs. McKinney 
have two children, their daughter Eudima and their son Charles 
Edgar. The father is a member of the Order of Odd Fellows and the 
Modern Woodmen of America in fraternal relations and earnestly 
interested in the welfare of both of the organizations to which he 
belongs. 

In reference to public affairs, although he is neither an office 
seeker nor a politician, he is true to his duties as a citizen and always 
zealous for the best interests of his township and county. He cor- 
dially supports all undertakings for their progress and improvement, 
and gives effective aid to all good agencies at work among their res- 
idents for worthy ends, moral, intellectual, social and material. He 
has a profitable business and it requires his close attention. But he 
never allows it to absorb his time and energy to the exclusion of the 
claims of citizenship, and to these he always gives heed in a practical 
and fruitful way. He lias made his mark in his township as one of ita 
best and most representative men. 



GRANVILLE H. STONE 

(Deceased) 

Although but fourteen years of age when he became a resident of 
Missouri, and but twenty-two when he located in Linn county, the 
late Granville H. Stone of North Salem township is fully entitled to 
be listed with the pioneers of this county and the state, and one of the 
heroic personages who blazed the way for the present high state of 
civilization and development in this part of the country. From the 
time of his arrival in Missouri, youth as he was, he made a hand on 
his father's farm and did as much as any other person in helping to 
reduce it to productiveness and improve it with the requirements of a 
comfortable home. 

Mr. Stone was a native of Grayson county, Virginia, where his 
life began on November 11, 1820, and his parents, Stephen and Mary 
(Chaney) Stone, were of the same nativity as himself. The father 
was a planter and owned a large number of slaves. In 1834 he moved 



774 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

his family by teams to Missouri, consuming six weeks in making the 
trip. He located near Fayette in Howard county, where he bought 
a small tract of land on which he lived and labored eight years. In 
1842, at the end of the period named, he sold his land in Howard 
county and moved to Linn county, where he bought a larger tract of 
land in North Salem township. 

On this new farm in the wilderness the parents passed the remain- 
der of their lives, the father dying on it on August 7, 1846, and the 
mother on November 23, 1863. They had five sons and five daughters, 
all now deceased. The father was a Democrat in political faith and 
affiliation, but although fervently and faithfully loyal to his party, he 
never held or sought a political office and never desired one. He and 
the mother were long devout and serviceable members of the Metho- 
dist Episcopal church. 

Their son Granville attained his manhood in this state, and in the 
limited schools of his youth here completed the education he had 
begun in the similar schools of his boyhood in his native state. The 
farm on which the family located in Howard county was yet almost 
virgin to the plow when his parents took possession of it. He aided 
his father in clearing and breaking it up, and bringing it to productive- 
ness. He accompanied the rest of the household to this county in 
1842, and here, also, he assisted in the work of redeeming from the 
wilderness the land on which the domestic shrine was erected, remain- 
ing at home until he reached the age of twenty-two. 

On September 1, 1842, he was united in marriage with Miss Mary 
C. Bailey, a daughter of Jacob and Catherine (Maddox) Bailey, who 
were born and reared in Kentucky and came to Linn county among 
its pioneers. They had twelve children, ten of whom are living: Albert 
H., of New Boston, Missouri; Sarah, now the wife of S. F. Forest of 
Seattle; Washington G., of New Boston, Missouri; Walter J., who re- 
sides in Lind, Washington; Anna E., who married J. M. Roberts, and 
has her home with him in Seattle, Washington; Martha, the wife of J. 
C. Cable of Windsor, Colorado; Andrew J., a resident of California; 
Melvina, who is now Mrs. Henry Mitchell of Wilson Creek, Washington; 
Mary E., who is the wife of Charles F. Little of Washington, Kansas, 
and John G., who resides in Warrensburg, Missouri. Their father, 
who was past ninety when he died, was a Democrat but never held or 
sought a political office. At the time of his death, which occurred on 
December 23, 1910, on the old farm which he occupied and cultivated 
for fifty-eight years, and 160 acres of which were given to his wife 
and himself by her parents at the time of his marriage, he owned 900 



HISTOEY OF LIXN COUNTY 77& 

acres of land, all in an a,dvanced state of cultivation and well improved. 
He was a deacon in the Baptist church and a leader in public affairs. 
His widow is still living on this farm with her son Albert, who is 
farming it with industry, judgment and skill. 

Albert H. Stone, the oldest son and first born child of Granville 
Stone of this sketch, was born in Linn county, Missouri, on April 7, 
1844. He grew to manhood and was educated in North Salem town- 
ship, and after leaving school began life for himself as a farmer, the 
occupation to which he had been trained on his father's homestead. 
He has adhered to this calling ever since, and has succeeded in it in 
a gratifying degree, as he has deserved to have done, for he is an 
excellent farmer, enterprising, progressive and up to date in every 
way. 

On August 25, 1865, he was married in Sullivan county, Indiana, 
to Miss Maria E. Roberts. They had four children, three of whom are 
living: Robert L., William W., and Mary J., now the wife of E. J. 
Baumberger. A son named Arthur died a number of years ago, and 
the mother died in 1877. On September 25, 1879, the father took as 
his second wife Miss Sarah E. Cable, a daughter of Joseph and Mar- 
garet (Hammond) Cable, who became residents of Linn county at the 
close of the Civil War. Nine children have been born of this union, 
eight of whom are living: Alma E., now the wife of L. J. Imbler; 
Ona E., the wife of Carl Locker; Joseph G.; Stella M., who is now Mrs. 
W. E. Morgan; and Albert H., Harry A., Charles C. and Beulah F. 
Their mother is living. 

Mr. Stone has served as township collector and township trustee 
and given the township good service in both positions. In political 
relations he is a Democrat, and in religious affiliation he is connected 
with the Baptist church. He has a good farm and handles it wisely 
and greatly to his own advantage, and he also dealt in past years in 
blooded live stock of superior strains. In regard to public affairs he 
is progressive and enterprising, and the residents of his township 
regard him as one of their most useful and representative citizens, and 
one of their most upright and straightforward and reliable men. 



GEORGE S. THUDIUM 

This leading merchant at Garner and prominent and highly 
esteemed citizen of Baker township, this county, is native here, hav- 
ing been born in Linn county on October 13, 1865, a son of John G. 
and Christina Thudium, a sketch of their lives will be found on another 



776 HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 

page of this volume, natives of Germany. He was reared on his 
father's farm in New Salem township, and before he became a mer- 
chant was a farmer himself. He has also lived in other places and 
engaged in other pursuits, and also owns and controls a farm at the 
present time, so that his experience in life has been varied and brought 
him in contact with persons of different classes, customs and aspira- 
tions, and gives him considerable knowledge of human nature and a 
broad view of life. 

George S. Thudium grew to manhood and was educated in Linn 
county. After leaving school he farmed for a few years, having been 
trained to the industry on his father's homestead, and then, in 1900, 
went to Colorado for a year. While in that state for health he engaged 
in merchandising. After his return to this county he again farmed 
for a number of years. In 1907 he turned his attention to general 
merchandising, and in that line of enterprise he has been engaged 
ever since. His store is the leading one in its locality, and is popular 
among the people for many miles around it. He conducts his business 
on rules of the strictest uprightness and square dealing, keeps his 
stock up to date, studies the wants of his patrons and makes every 
effort to provide for them. He is a progressive and enterprising mer- 
chant, and is successful in his business because he deserves to be and 
so manages his affairs as to command success. 

On April 19, 1888, Mr. Thudium was united in marriage with Miss 
Emma A. Nester, a daughter of Colvil Nester, a Linn county pioneer 
who came to this county in 1837, and is still a resident of it. Four 
children have been born in the Thudium household, three of whom 
are living, William L., Lulu M. and Mabel M. Their father has served 
as a justice of the peace for fourteen years and also as township trus- 
tee. He is a Republican in politics, but not a very active partisan. 
Throughout the county he is well known and in all parts of it he is 
well esteemed as a progressive and public-spirited citizen, a good busi- 
ness man and an estimable personage in every way. 



JUDGE GEORGE W. STEPHENS 

This fine old gentleman, who has filled many offices in the gift of 
the people of Linn county, and who showed his patriotism at the 
beginning of the Mexican War by promptly enlisting a company for 
service in that short but decisive conflict, is now nearing the age of 
ninety years, and his life has been one of great usefulness in services of 



HISTORY OF LINN" COUNTY 777 

a high character. His life-story is one of the most interesting which 
could engage the pen of the biographer. His career has been clean 
and commendable in every way, and the people of the whole county 
hold him in great esteem and veneration. 

Judge Stephens was born in Orange county, Virginia, on February 
22, 1826, and he is a gentleman of distinguished ancestry. On his 
mother's side he is a lineal descendant of the first Bishop Doggett of 
Virginia who founded Christ Church in that state in colonial times. 
The judge's father was a soldier in the War of 1812, and died in his 
native state at an advanced age after making a record of great credit 
to himself and benefit to his state. 

When the Mexican War began Mr. Stephens, then a young man, 
enlisted a company and was commissioned captain by Governor Smith 
of Virginia on April 6, 1846. He was married in Hanover county, Vir- 
ginia, in 1848, to a Miss Eouzie, the daughter of an eminent physician 
and surgeon whose ancestors came to America from France with Gen- 
eral Lafayette. On her mother's side Mrs. Stephens was descended in 
a direct line from former Governor James Pleasant, of the Old 
Dominion. 

Judge Stephens arrived in Linneus on July 11, 1856, while the 
sale of Guitar's addition was in progress. He purchased two lots and 
soon afterward bought the fine farm adjacent to the city later occu- 
pied by William H. Garrett. But he did not intend to devote his time 
and energies to farming alone. He was licensed to practice law in 
1855 by Hon. James A. Clark of Linneus, then judge of this circuit. 
Being a man of undaunted energy and industry, he exerted his mental 
and physical powers in the successful practice of his profession, in 
which he rose to a high rank and commanding influence at the bar 
and before the people. 

The judge, however, continued to purchase land and at one time 
was one of the most extensive landholders in the county, and con- 
tributed largely to its material prosperity and progress in the improve- 
ment and development of this fine country. He has filled several 
important offices in Linn county, among them that of probate judge, 
to which position he was appointed by the county court as the suc- 
cessor of Judge Brownlee. Under the Fletcher administration he was 
removed to make room for a Republican, he being a Democrat. But 
the county court immediately appointed him commissioner to admin- 
ister the bounty act passed by the legislature, and in the discharge of 
the duties of this office he was entrusted with the disbursement of a 



778 HISTOl^Y OF LINN COUNTY 

large amount of money. He has also been several times elected by the 
citizens of Linneus mayor of the city. 

Judge Stephens contributed extensively to the building of the 
Burlington & Southwestern Railroad. He was elected president of 
this ,company in 1869, and he at once began to use his energies and 
even his private funds in pushing the work onward. During the .first 
year of his service as president he had the charter of the road promptly 
extended to the Iowa line, and negotiated the bonds in the East. When 
this was done the road rapidly approached completion under the stim- 
ulus given to the work by the energy, foresight and resourcefulness 
of the president. 

Judge Stephens has eight children all living in Linneus. His old- 
est son, E. R. Stephens, is a regular law graduate of the University 
at Lebanon, Tennessee, and was the senior member of the law firm of 
Stephens & Smith in Linneus. He was elected prosecuting attorney of 
Linn county in 1874, and held the office until succeeded by his brother- 
in-law, E. W. Smith, who married the oldest daughter of Judge 
Stephens, Miss Maria L. Stephens. 

Politically Judge Stephens is a representative Democrat, and has 
served as a delegate to many count}^ congressional and state conven- 
tions since he became a resident of Linn county. But advancing years 
have stayed his busy hand, and for a long time now he has been prac- 
tically retired from active pursuits. He is one of the reviewers of 
this work and gives it the sanction of his name and influence. 



LORENZO T. McKINNEY 

Lorenzo T. McKinney, the present capable, genial and obliging 
postmaster of New Boston, Baker township, this county, and one of 
the enterprising and wideawake merchants of that village, was born in 
Adair county, Missouri, on July 6, 1869, and is one of the two sons of 
Charles and Maggie (Diedle) McKinney, an account of whose lives 
will be found in a sketch of his brother, Asa 0. McKinney, which ap- 
pears in this volume. 

Mr. M,cKinney was brought to Linn county by his parents when he 
was six months old and has lived in the county and Baker township 
ever since. He grew to manhood on his father's farm and assisted in 
its cultivation until he completed the course of instruction in the dis- 
trict schools of the to wm ship. After leaving school he remained with 



HISTOEY OF LINN COUNTY 779 

his parents a short time, then began farming on his own account, con- 
tinuing his activity in that line of usefulness until 1890. 

In November, 1906, he was appointed postmaster of New Boston, 
and he at once started his present mercantile business. He has held 
the office and carried on his merchandising ever since, giving ex,cellent 
service to the public in the one and making a good record for enter- 
prise and intelligence in business in the other. He is active, also, in 
the social life of the community, and a great force for good in connec- 
tion with it, and he takes a cordial interest in fraternal affairs as a 
member of the Order of Odd Fellows and the Modern Woodmen of 
America. 

On January 29, 1896, Mr. McKinney was married in Newkirk, 
Oklahoma, to Miss Carrie M. Crowder, a native of Linn county, Mis- 
souri. They have one child, their son Russell L., who is now in school 
and making a good record there. The father is modest and unassum- 
ing in manner and demeanor, but he is energetic and far-seeing in 
his zeal for the good of Baker township, and New Boston in particular, 
and the whole of Linn county in general. In political contests he is 
not notably active, but in all relations where the best interests of his 
locality and its residents are at stake he is outspoken for progress and 
improvement and always ready to do his part toward winning desired 
results and keeping the car of advancement in motion at the safest 
and most productive rate of speed. The people among whom he has 
passed his life so far have knowledge of his genuine worth and use- 
fulness and estimate him at his true value as an excellent citizen, 
reliable and enterprising merchant, capable and conscientious public 
official and admirable representative of elevated and sterling Ameri- 
can manhood. 



DANIEL BERKHOLDER 

During all of the last forty-two years Daniel Berkholder has been 
a resident of Enterprise township, this county, and throughout the 
greater part of the time, almost all of it, in fact, has been a leading 
farmer and an influential citizen of that part of Linn county. Like 
most of the other old settlers of the county, he took up unbroken and 
unimproved land when he came here, and like them, also, he has made 
a good farm out of the wilderness, improved it with comfortable build- 
ings and other needed structures, and transformed the wild domain 
into a desirable and valuable home. 



780 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

Mr. Berkholder is an Upper Canadian by nativity, having been 
born in the upper part of the Dominion on April 10, 1837. His parents 
were William and Barbara (Gothcheney) Berkholder, the former a 
native of Pennsylvania and the latter of Alsace-Lorraine, the province 
which was torn from France by Germany by the stern arbitrament of 
the sword in 1871. The father was reared on his father's farm in Penn- 
sylvania, but at the age of twenty started out in life for himself, going 
to Buffalo, New York, and from there to Upper Canada. He remained 
in the latter country until 1869, when he came to Linn county to live 
and bought a tract of land in Enterprise township, which he cleared 
and made over into a good farm and a comfortable home. He died in 
Purdin, and the mother passed away some years before on the farm 
which she had helped to redeem from the wilderness. 

They were the parents of fourteen children, five sons and nine 
daughters. Four of the sons and seven of the daughters are living. 
The grandfather, Berkholder, was born and reared in Switzerland. He 
came to this country in his young manhood and settled in Pennsylvania, 
and after many years of usefulness as a tiller of the soil he died in that 
state at a good old age, comfortable in a worldly way and universally 
esteemed in the locality of his residence. 

Daniel Berkholder grew to manhood in Canada and obtained a 
limited common school education in the country school near his home. 
He farmed in that country, after leaving school, until 1870, when he 
came to Missouri and located on the Linn county farm in Enterprise 
township which he now owns and occupies, and which he has changed 
from an expanse of wild prairie, enriched by the growth and decay of 
ages, to one of the best farms in the township. He has put up good 
buildings and fences, and farmed his land with judgment and skill, 
and in doing so has made an enduring impress on the township as an 
excellent farmer and a first-rate manager of his business. 

On January 3, 1865, Mr. Berkholder was married to Miss Caroline 
Gallmon, a daughter of John and Katie (Seeler) Gallmon, both born in 
Germany and both now deceased, having died in Canada. Mr. and Mrs. 
Berkholder have eight children: Rudolph, William J., Daniel, John H., 
Annie, the wife of F. 0. Kelley; Hattie, who is now Mrs. William Mil- 
ler ; Emma, who is the wife of J. Guier, and Jay A. 

The father is a Democrat in his political connection and firm in the 
faith and energetic and effective in the service of his party. He has 
been school director and road overseer, and has rendered good service 
in both positions. His religious affiliation is with the Presbyterian 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 781 

church. In addition to his extensive and progressive farming opera- 
tions-he is engaged in breeding heavy horses and superior grades of 
cattle and hogs, and his rank as a careful and successful breeder is 
high and widespread. He makes both his farming and his live stock 
business pay by his good management, and in reference to public atfairs 
he is always at the front with energy and intelligent helpfulness. In 
all parts of the county he is highly esteemed. 



THOMAS FOX 



The scion of old Irish families which for generations lived and 
labored in picturesque old County Sligo, and took part in its varied 
industries of cattle grazing, woolen and linen manufacturing and fish- 
ing, and followed their daily pursuits in an atmosphere redolent with 
historical fragrance preserved and handed down for hundreds of years, 
Thomas Fox, one of the prosperous and progressive farmers of Yel- 
low Creek township, Linn County, would have brought to this country 
an immediate personal inspiration born of the achievements of the 
people of his native place if he had lived there long enough to acquire 
a knowledge of them. But his parents left the land of their ancestors 
and all the associations and influences of their early life when he was 
three years old, and all that he knows of the Emerald Isle and its peo- 
ple he has acquired at second hand through recitals of his parents 
around the family fireside and his own subsequent reading. But even 
under these circumstances the spirit of his native land and his ancestors 
has had a controlling influence in his career, and helped to make him 
what he is. That spirit has stimulated his native energy and versatility 
to fruitful action and vastly aided him in working out good results. 

Mr. Fox was born in the city of Sligo, Ireland, in March, 1830, and 
when he was three years old, as has been noted, his parents moved to 
Canada, where they passed the remainder of their daj-s, living first in 
Toronto and afterward at Mount Albert, in the same province of On- 
atrio. They had been reared, educated and married in Ireland, and 
came to this side of the Atlantic in 1834, with a large hope of bettering 
their condition in a worldly w^ay, and acquiring something for a better 
start in life for their children than they had themselves. In this design 
they succeeded in a measure, making good headway in prosperity in 
their new home and winning the cordial regard and good will of the 
people around them. They were Michael and Mary (Burns) Fox, and 



783 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

they well sustained in the New World the reputation of their ancestors 
won through merit in the Old, 

Their son, Thomas Fox, became a resident of the state of Missouri 
and Linn county in 1870, having come into this region to engage in 
general farming, and in this pursuit he has ever since been occupied. 
He has conducted his operations in a way that has been highly credit- 
able to himself and decidedly beneficial to the county and its residents. 
For he has been a progressive farmer, modern in his methods and up- 
to-date in every respect. His land is naturally good, and his intelligent 
and systematic way of cultivating it has largely increased its fertility 
and fruitfulness and made it yield abundant returns for the labor and 
care bestowed upon it. 

On February 24, 1868, Mr. Fox was married to Miss Elizabeth 
Martin, a native of Cleveland, Ohio, in the neighborhood of which her 
parents, William and Jane (Shea) Martin, were for many years busily 
and profitably engaged in farming. They came to this country from 
County Waterford, Ireland, and if they did not realize all the hopes 
they cherished when they came, they at least accumulated a comfort- 
able competence for life and attained an elevated place in the esteem 
and general regard of the people among whom they lived and labored 
on this side of the ocean. 

Mr. and Mrs. Fox have seven children, all of whom are living and 
unmarried. They are: Mary, William, Elizabeth, Joseph, John, Leo 
and Martin, and are all held in high esteem wherever they are known. 
The father is a firm and faithful Democrat in political allegiance and 
has always taken an earnest and serviceable interest in the welfare of 
his party. His religious connection, and that of all the members of his 
family, is with the Catholic church, to which they are all devotedly at- 
tached and in the service of which they are zealous and energetic, but 
they are at the same time tolerant toward the religious views of their 
friends and neighbors, and able to see good in all the organizations of 
men formed for benevolent and uplifting purposes and the general im- 
provement of the human race. 

In promoting the general welfare and advancement of his locality, 
Mr. Fox has always been a potential factor, working with zeal and 
energy in behalf of every worthy project designed to further the prog- 
ress and improvement of the locality of his home and the substantial 
and enduring betterment of its people. He is widely and favorably 
known in Linn county, and in all parts of it is accounted one of its 
most sterling, sturdy and estimable citizens from every point of view. 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 783 

SHELDON L. WILSON 

(Deceased) 

A valiant soldier in the Union army during the Civil War, and 
bearing to his grave the marks of his service, and an enterprising, pro- 
gressive and prosperous farmer in times of peace, the late Sheldon L. 
Wilson of Linn county, showed in his useful life that whatever the 
call to duty he was ready to respond to it, and whatever the perils or 
labor involved in the performance of it, he never shirked them or 
shrank from them. He was true to every requirement of his manhood, 
and at his death, on June 12, 1907, at the age of sixty years and six 
months, he left an excellent name and record as a man and citizen as 
imperishable legacies to his family. 

Mr. Wilson was born in Bridgeport, Connecticut, on January 23, 
1847, and was a son of Levi and Harriet (Wiggins) Wilson, also natives 
of that state. They moved from there to Iowa county, Wisconsin, 
where they lived until 1869, then came to this county and located on a 
wild tract of land, on which they passed the remainder of their lives, 
making it over into an attractive and valuable farm, and dying on it 
well advanced in years after a long period of usefulness here and else- 
where. They were the parents of three sons and one daughter. Two 
of the sons are living still, and keeping up the traditions of the family 
with credit to themselves and benefit to their several communities. 

Sheldon L. Wilson was yet a child when his parents moved to Wis- 
consin. He grew to manhood in that state, and at a very youthful age 
enlisted in the Fifth Wisconsin Light Artillery for three years to take 
part in the Civil War in defense of the Union. He participated in seven- 
teen of the most important, desperate and sanguinary battles of the 
war, among them those of Shiloh, Chattanooga, Missionary Ridge, Look- 
out Mountain, Buzzard's Roost, Peach Tree Creek, and the sieges of 
Atlanta and Savannah. In one of these desperate encounters he was 
wounded in the left leg, and he felt the effects of the wound at inter- 
vals to the end of his life. 

In 1868 Mr. Wilson was married to Miss Sarah E. Miller of Wis- 
consin, where the marriage occurred, and the next year he brought his 
bride to this state and took up his residence in Linn county. Forced by 
circumstances to begin at the bottom of the ladder as a farmer here, 
he cheerfully accepted his fate and resolutely entered upon the im- 
provement of his finances and the building of his career in this locality. 
He took up a tract of unbroken, untamed, unimproved land, which 



784 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

bad never yet heard the commanding voice or felt the persuasive hand 
of the husbandman, and established himself on it without hesitation. 

The tract embraced 120 acres, and in the course of a few years 
Mr. Wilson had transformed it into a productive farm, enriched it with 
good buildings and other improvements, and made an attractive and 
valuable home of it. As time passed and he prospered, he found it 
desirable to add to his industry, and became a successful and well 
known breeder X)f Heriford cattle, and also kept a store at Shelby for 
five years. He succeeded by his influence and energy in having a post- 
office established there, and served as the first postmaster, keeping the 
office in his store. 

Mr. and Mrs. Wilson became the parents of seven children, four 
of whom are living: William L., Charles L., Ethel J. and Herbert L. 
Ethel is now the wife of J. Berkholder. The father was a Eepublican 
in political relations, ardently attached to the principles of his party 
and zealous in support of them. Fraternally he was connected with 
the Masonic Order and the Ancient Order of United Workmen. In the 
public affairs of his township and county he was always deeply, prac- 
tically and helpfully interested, and in seeking to promote the general 
welfare no man in his township was more energetic or effective. 



DR. J. M. BOYLES 

Esteemed as a man and citizen, popular as a physician and surgeon 
and admired as a farmer. Dr. J. M. Boyles of Shelby, this county, has, 
evidently made a good record among the people for whom he has 
labored and with whom he has been associated professionally and 
otherwise from the time when he was ten years old, and as an active 
and capable doctor for about twenty-eight j^ears. He is not a native 
of Linn county, but almost all of his life to the present time (1912) 
has been passed in it, and he is therefore as closely connected with its 
history, as warmly interested in its welfare and as strongly attached 
to its residents as he could be if he had been born here, as he waa 
reared and educated. 

The doctor's life began in Hancock county, Ohio, on October 4, 
1856. His parents, David and Rhodie (Gulp) Boyles, were also born 
in Ohio, and were reared and educated in that state. The father farmed 
there until 1866, then moved his family to this county, locating on a 
farm 'south of Linneus. He lived on and cultivated this farm until a 
few years ago, when he retired from active pursuits and took up his 
residence in Linneus. While the Civil War was in progress he served 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 786 

in the Union army two years in an Iowa regiment, his service being all 
on the frontier. The mother is still living. She and her husband are 
the parents of seven children, four sons and three daughters. 

The grandfather, John Boyles, was born and reared in Pennsyl- 
vania and moved to Ohio in his young manhood and the early history 
of the state. He came with his son David ,to Linn county in 1866, and 
here he passed the remainder of his life. He was the father of nine 
sons and one daughter. The daughter and two of the sons are living. 

Dr. Boyles grew to manhood in Linn county and obtained his gen- 
eral academic education in the district schools. After completing their 
course of instruction he attended the State Normal School at Kirksville 
with a view to preparing himself for a teacher, and he taught school 
five years. While teaching he studied medicine under the direction of 
Dr. 0. H. Wood of Brookfield, and during the winter of 1880-81 at- 
tended the medical department of the State University. 

He began practicing on a certificate in 1884 at North Salem, where 
he continued that arrangement until 1889. He then took a course of 
lectures in the Missouri Medical College, St. Louis, and from that 
institution he was graduated in 1890. He then took up his residence 
at Shelby, and here he has ever since lived, practiced medicine and en- 
gaged in general farming. His practice has been large and remunera- 
tive and his farming operations have been conducted in a way that has 
made them profitable. But the doctor has been a very busy man, for 
he has never allowed anything to interfere with his professional duties, 
and they have been very exacting. 

On June 14, 1905, he was married to Miss Agnes R. Mattis, a daugh- 
ter of John and Mary (Haas) Mattis, natives of Germany. The father 
died in his native land and the mother came to this country in 1888. 
Dr. and Mrs. Boyles are the parents of three children: John C, Fran- 
cis N. and Robert E. The doctor is a director of the Stock Growers' 
Bank of Purdin. In fraternal relations he is a Freemason, and in all 
matters involving the welfare and improvement of his township and 
county he is deeply, practically and helpfully interested. He is favor- 
ably known all over the county, and is esteemed as one of its best and 
most useful citizens. 



JACOB E. SPENCER 

Standing well in the good opinion and approbation of all residents 
of Linn county as a first-rate farmer, enterprising, progressive and re- 
sourceful, and prominent as an advanced and successful breeder of 



786 HISTORY OF LIXN COUNTY 

mules and high-grade horses in this county and throughout a large 
extent of the surrounding country, Jacob E. Spencer of Grantville 
township, this county, has lived and employed his time and abilities to 
good purpose for his own advancement and the benefit of the locality 
in which he has passed his life from boyhood engaged in useful labor. 

Mr. Spencer was born in Jasper county, Missouri, on April 3, 1869, 
and is a son of Richard W. and Mary C. (Pipes) Spencer, the former a 
native of Virginia and the latter of Missouri. The father was yet a 
child when his parents moved from the Old Dominion to this state. 
His father, also named Jacob Spencer, selected Sullivan county as his 
place of residence, and located on a tract of wild land w^iich he trans- 
formed into a model farm. He then moved his family to Jasper county 
in this state, and there both he and his wife died. They were the 
parents of five sons and four daughters, all but one of whom are living. 

Their son Richard, the father of Jacob E., moved from Jasper to 
Linn county, and passed the rest of his days engaged in farming, dying 
on his Linn county farm in 1908. During the Civil War he served in the 
state militia, but was not called into actual hostilities. During many 
years of his life he was a devout and attentive member of the Methodist 
Episcopal church, and always he was an excellent and useful citizen. 
The mother is still living. Three sons and two daughters were born 
of their union, and all of the five are living. 

Jacob E. Spencer was reared from boyhood in this county and 
educated in its country schools. He grew to manhood on his father's 
farm and acquired a thorough practical knowledge of farming by par- 
ticipation in its useful labors, aiding his father in the cultivation of it 
until he attained his manhood. When he took up for himself the strug- 
gle for advancement among men he naturally turned to the occupa- 
tion lie was trained to and became a farmer on his own account; and 
to this occupation he has ever since adhered without a break or inter- 
ruption of any kind. 

During the last five years Mr. Spencer has been actively and profit- 
ably engaged in breeding mules and high-grade horses in connection 
with his general farming operations. In this, as in his farming, he 
has been very successful, making money out of the business and win- 
ning a high reputation as a careful, enterprising and judicious breeder. 
His stables are extensively known and enjoy an excellent name for the 
superior quality of their output, which is always the product of intel- 
ligence, the utmost care and good management. The best results pos- 
sible are what Mr. Spencer aims at, and he generally, if not invariably, 
hits his mark. 



HISTORY OF LIXN COUNTY 787 

In 1890 he was united in marriage with Miss Fannie L. Shrader, a 
daughter of Robert Shrader, who became a resident of Linn county 
about the year 1880. Of the offspring of the union seven are living: 
Earl, Ray, Roy, Lee, Gertrude, Goldie and Lloyd. They are domesti- 
cated with their parents on a fine farm of 470 acres belonging to the 
father, and all acquired by his industry, thrift, business ability and 
good management of his affairs. He has applied the same elements of 
power to the affairs of the county, where he has taken part in them, 
seeking always wholesome progress and development and the general 
welfare of the whole people. Fraternally he belongs to the Masonic 
Order, and in all respects he is a first-rate citizen and universally 
esteemed as such. 



CHARLES E. SMITH 

This gentleman is one of the leading country merchants of Linn 
county, and, although he has varied his occupation by farming for 
years at a time, he is now in his true field of enterprise, if fair infer- 
ences can be drawm from the success he is achieving in it. He was suc- 
cessful as a farmer, too, and throughout his long life in this county 
has demonstrated to its people that he has native ability and judg- 
ment of a high order, and would likely have won success in any line 
of endeavor. 

Mr. Smith was born in Sullivan county, Missouri, on February 1, 
1861, and is a son of Addison J. and Docia (Peaveler) Smith, the former 
a native of New York State and the latter of Kentucky. From the 
dawm of his manhood the father was a farmer. In his boyhood he 
moved with his parents from his native state to Illinois, and from that 
state to Missouri and Linn county, locating here in 1858. He took up 
his residence on a farm west of Salem in 1860, and was married in that 
neighborhood about that time. He was not allowed to enjoy his domes- 
tic happiness undisturbed for a very long period, however, as the Civil 
War began the next year after his marriage, and he felt it his duty to 
go to the defense of the Union. Accordingly, he enlisted in 1861 in 
the Missouri Volunteer Infantry, in which he served three years and six 
months. He was with his company in a number of battles, notably the 
one at Prairie Grove, Arkansas. He was once taken prisoner, but was 
exchanged a few days later and returned to his company. 

After the w^ar Mr. Smith located on a farm in this county, which 
he cultivated until 1882, then went to North Dakota, and from there 
to Evansville, Indiana, where he is now living. The mother died a num- 



788 HISTORY OF LIN^T COUNTY 

ber of years ago. They had three daughters and five sons, all of whom 
are living. 

Charles E. Smith was reared in Linn county from boyhood and 
educated in its district schools. After attaining his manhood he farmed 
for fourteen years in North Dakota, but in 1894 returned to this county 
and opened a general store at Shelby. After a few years he abandoned 
merchandising and again engaged in farming for some years, then 
once more became a merchant, which he has been ever since. He is 
enterprising and progressive in his business, studies the wants of his 
community and does all he can to fully provide for them by keeping his 
stock comprehensive and up to date, and he, furthermore, deals with all 
his patrons with the strictness, fairness and integrity, giving them ad- 
ditional satisfaction on this account. 

In 1889 Mr. Smith was united in marriage with Miss Lizzie Mc- 
Ghee, a sister of William T. McGhee, a sketch of whom will be found 
elsewhere in this work. Mr. and Mrs. Smith have seven children: 
Eay, Julia, Edith, Scott, Daisy, Isabelle and Horace. The father is 
warmly attached to his home and his family, and gives his business 
the closest and most careful attention. But he also takes an earnest 
interest and an active part in the affairs of his township and county, 
and is always ready to aid in promoting their progress and improve- 
ment. He is everywhere, in all parts of the county, regarded as a good 
business man and a thoroughly representative and public-spirited citi- 
zen, and for all his excellent qualities and characteristics the residents 
of the county hold him in the highest esteem, good will and ap- 
probation. 



DANIEL AM6S 



If any person were to question the loyalty to the American Union 
of Daniel Ambs, one of the substantial and progressive farmers of Yel- 
low Creek township, as no one who knows him ever will, he could 
answer with great force and pertinency: "I was born under a foreign 
flag and came to this country when I was but twenty-two years old. I 
was a resident of the United States but seven years when I shouldered 
my musket and marched to the front with other volunteers to save the 
Union from dismemberment by the stern arbitrament of the sword, and 
in the momentous conflict that ensued I bore my share of the responsi- 
bility and performed mj^ portion of the duty required without flinching 
or hesitation. I suffered the horrors of military imprisonment, and 
faced death on several of the historic battlefields of the Civil War. And 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 789 

ever since the 'battle flags were furled,' and the war drum ceased to 
throb, I have been engaged industriously in a pursuit of productive 
fruitfulness, which has given me opportunity to contribute essentially 
and directly to the welfare of the country and the benefit of all its 
people." 

Mr. Ambs would not say this. With the genuine modesty of real 
merit, he is reticent about his own performances and achievements, 
and never blows his own horn. But it is all in his record, and he is 
entitled to full credit for it, and this is never withheld where he is 
known. Mr. Ambs was born in the city of Baden, grand duchy of the 
same name, in Germany, on April 21, 1832, and is a son of George and 
Mary Ann (Trinkley) Ambs, natives of the same place and belonging 
to families domesticated there for many generations. 

Mr. Ambs grew to the age of twenty-two and obtained his educa- 
tion in his native land. In June, 1854, he came to the United States, 
the land of promise and opportunity for the masses of mankind in all 
other countries at that time, and at once took hold of the openings it 
offered for his advancement with the characteristic grip and persistent 
determination of his race. He landed in the city of New York and 
located in New Jersey, where he was employed on a farm for some- 
thing over three years. 

But the small farming of the East in this country, intensive as it 
was, and highly profitable in many cases, owing to the abundance and 
activity of the markets in the big cities which abound in that region, 
did not satisfy his preconceived notions of American agricultural en- 
terprise, or his own desire for participation in work conducted on a 
large scale. Accordingly, in 1858 he moved to Illinois and took up his 
residence in a very productive region southwest of Chicago, but not 
very far distant from the great city. Openness and amplitude were 
still needed to meet the measure of his desires, and he did not find them 
where he was. So, in a short time he moved to Palmyra, in the prairie 
region of Macoupin county, and in the neighborhood of that city he 
lived until the beginning of the Civil War. 

On July 22, 1861, under one of the early calls of President Lincoln 
for volunteers to take part in the defense of the Union, he enlisted in 
Company H, Tenth Missouri Volunteer Infantry, being enrolled in the 
city of St. Louis. His regiment was soon at the front and face to face 
with actual hostilities and all the horrors of the battlefield. He took 
part in the battles of luka, Corinth and Jackson, Mississippi, including 
the forty-seven days' siege of Vicksburg, and the previous long and 



790 HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 

trying march to that city, and that of Resaca, Georgia, at the last of 
which lie was taken prisoner. 

This Avas in the winter of 1864, but he secured his release soon after 
his capture and returned to his Palmyra, Illinois, home. A few 
months later he got his honorable discharge from the army in St. Louis, 
and then moved to this county, w^here he has ever since had his home 
and employed his energies. On his arrival in Linn county he resumed 
his farming operations, and from that time to the present has adhered 
to them, notwithstanding many strong temptations to turn aside to 
other pursuits, and has found them steadily and satisfactorily profitable. 

He was married on January 27, 1873. Nine children have been 
born to him, all of whom are living they are : John, Anna, who is now 
the wife of Joseph Ott of Brookfield; Catherine, who is living at home 
with her parents; Josephine, the wife of Charles Groetecke of Brook- 
field; and Simon, Andrew, Theresa, James and Joseph, all of whom 
ai'e still members of the parental household and sources of light and 
life in the parental family circle. 

In national political affairs the father is a firm and faithful mem- 
ber of the Republican party. But in local matters he considers first 
the welfare of his township and county, and casts his ballot in accord- 
ance with his convictions in reference to that. In church affiliation he 
is a Catholic and an ardent and effective w^orker for the parish in 
which he resides. He is one of the sturdy, sterling and reliable citizens 
of Yellow Creek township and Linn county, and is everywhere recog- 
nized and esteemed as such. 



JOHN J. BROWN 

(Deceased) 

The late John J. Brown was a native of Linn county and became 
one of its leading farmers. He was born here on August 3, 1850, and 
died here, having passed the whole of his life in the county. He was 
earnestly interested and helpfully active in behalf of the progress and 
improvement of the region, showing himself to be a broad-minded, 
public-spirited and useful citizen, and his death was universally 
deplored. 

Mr. Brown belonged to a distinguished family in this part of the 
state, his kin having given tone and character to the citizenship of the 
region, and trend and force to the development of its resources, and 
the establishment and early course of its civil, educational and moral 



HISTORY OF LINN COUNTY 791 

institutions. He was a son of Thomas and Thusia (Jones) Brown, the 
former a native of Howard county, Missouri. The name of this family 
runs clear and strong through the early history of the county, its mem- 
bers were prominent in all the social, political and business avenues of 
life in the locality, and showed the caliber they possessed by the 
breadth and firmness of the foundations of civilization they helped to 
lay in this region. 

John J. Brown grew to manhood in Linn county and obtained what 
education he was able to secure in the primitive country schools of his 
day, which were like schools on the frontier everywhere. He remained 
at home with his parents until he reached the age of twenty-three, 
when he began farming on his own account on land that was partially 
cleared, and which he lived on and cultivated nine years. In 1882 he 
moved to the farm he died on, which he improved to a great state of 
advancement and made very valuable. He kept adding to his original 
tract by subsequent purchases as he prospered in his business until he 
owned 480 acres, all fenced and under cultivation. He also engaged 
extensively in raising registered Shorthorn cattle and superior breeds 
of hogs, and was as progressive and successful in this department of 
his industry as he was in his farming operations, in which his success 
was extensive, positive and continued. 

On March 5, 1873, Mr. Brown was united in marriage with Miss 
Mary E.Nevens,a daughter of Joseph T.and Elizabeth (Gooch) Nevens, 
who became early residents of Linn county. The father died here in 
1888, but the mother is still living in the county. Mr. and Mrs. Brown 
became the parents of seven children, six of whom are living: Mary F., 
who is now the wife of Joseph Cornett; James L., William H., Lola I., 
who married Mr. Williams and resides in this county; and Ethel K., 
who is still at home with her mother on the family homestead. 

During his life Mr. Brown was a member of the Christian church, 
to which his widow still belongs. In his political faith he trained with 
the Democratic party, and being a strong believer in its principles, 
gave them and its candidates strong and serviceable support on all oc- 
casions. He took an active part in public affairs, always on the side of 
progress and further development, and all his efforts in this behalf 
were vitalized by great energy and directed by intelligence and clear- 
ness of vision. His influence was considerable in local circles and in 
addition to what he did for the general welfare of his township and 
county himself, he produced good results from others by his persuasive- 
ness and the force of his stimulating example. The people everywhere 
respected him highly. 



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